Bromatological Analysis and Characterization of Phenolics in Snow Mountain Garlic.

The remarkable properties of garlic A. sativum L. have been described, but little is known about Snow mountain garlic. Understanding general aspects of this garlic composition, including the presence of phenolics, will establish its possible use for health or infer which compounds can contribute to improving it. This study aimed to determine the ash content, lipid profile, and characterization of phenolics in Snow mountain garlic. The organic content was obtained by common techniques (oven drying, calcination, Kjeldahl method, etc.). The quantitative analysis of the ashes was made by Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectrometry. The fatty acid profile was determined by Gas Chromatography. The presence of phenolics was determined by foam, Libermann-Burchard, Dragendorff, Salkowski, ferric chloride, vanillin, catechin, Constantinescu, and Shinoda reactions. The total phenolic content was determined via the Folin-Ciocalteu method, and antioxidant activity was determined using the DPPH radical method. The bromatological analysis showed a 51.1% humidity, and the main organic compounds were carbohydrates (46.7%). Ash analysis showed 287.46 g/kg of potassium. The fatty acid profile showed 75.61% of polyunsaturated fatty acid. Phenolics like saponins, alkaloids, triterpenes, tannins, and flavonoids were present. Antioxidant activity was found by radical DPPH of 25.64 (±0.78) µmol TE/1 g dw. Snow mountain garlic shares a composition similar to those found in other garlic.

Blends of Carbohydrate Polymers for the Co-Microencapsulation of Bacillus clausii and Quercetin as Active Ingredients of a Functional Food.

A functional food based on blends of carbohydrate polymers and active ingredients was prepared by spray drying. Inulin (IN) and maltodextrin (MX) were used as carrying agents to co-microencapsulate quercetin as an antioxidant and Bacillus clausii (Bc) as a probiotic. Through a reduced design of experiments, eleven runs were conducted and characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC). The physical characterizations showed fine and non-aggregated powders, composed of pseudo-spherical particles with micrometric sizes. The observation of rod-like particles suggested that microorganisms were microencapsulated in these particles. The microstructure of the powders was amorphous, observing diffraction peaks attributed to the crystallization of the antioxidant. The glass transition temperature (Tg) of the blends was above the room temperature, which may promote a higher stability during storage. The antioxidant activity (AA) values increased for the IN-MX blends, while the viability of the microorganisms increased with the addition of MX. By a surface response plot (SRP) the yield showed a major dependency with the drying temperature and then with the concentration of IN. The work contributes to the use of carbohydrate polymers blends, and to the co-microencapsulation of active ingredients.

Strawberry Juice Powders: Effect of Spray-Drying Conditions on the Microencapsulation of Bioactive Components and Physicochemical Properties.

The drying of fruit juices has advantages such as easy handling of powders, reduction in volume, and preservation of the characteristics of the fruit. Thus, in this work, the effect of the spray drying conditions of strawberry juice (SJ) with maltodextrin (MX) as a carrying agent on the microencapsulation of bioactive compounds and physicochemical properties was studied. The content of phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity showed higher values at low concentrations of MX, while the effect of drying temperature was negligible. The thermal characterization showed that the low molecular weight sugars in the juice decreased the glass transition temperature (Tg). The morphological analysis by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) indicated that at low concentrations of MX, the particles agglomerated, while at intermediate and high concentrations, the particles were observed as well separated. Through microstructural analysis by X-ray diffraction (XRD), the presence of amorphous state was confirmed in all the samples, which is beneficial for preventing chemical and biochemical reactions, and promoting the conservation of the microencapsulated bioactive compounds.

Physicochemical Properties and Antioxidant Activity of Spray-Dry Broccoli (Brassica oleracea var Italica) Stalk and Floret Juice Powders.

This research presents the microencapsulation and conservation of antioxidants of broccoli juice processed by spray drying, and proposes the use of a by-product as a technological application. Broccoli juice (BJ) extracted from two sources, stalks and florets, was spray-dried employing maltodextrin (MX) as a carrier agent at concentrations of 5, 7.5, and 10%, and inlet temperatures of 150 and 220 °C. The total phenolic content (TPC), and antioxidant activity (AA) of the BJ-MX powders were determined together with the physicochemical characteristics, including particle morphology, microstructure, and thermal properties. Based on the TPC and AA, the optimal processing conditions found were 5% of MX and a drying temperature of 220 °C. However, the florets showed higher TPC, while stalks presented higher AA under those processing conditions. The particles exhibited micrometric sizes and a mixture of spherical-shape particles and pseudo-spherical particles. The diffractograms indicated an amorphous microstructure in all samples. The glass transition temperature (Tg) was determined in the range of 50 °C for the samples dried at 150 °C and 55 °C for those dried at 220 °C. This suggested that powders might be stored at temperatures below the Tg without presenting any loss of antioxidants.

Phenomenological study of the synthesis of pure anhydrous ß-lactose in alcoholic solution.

Lactose is an important additive because of its food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic applications. Among lactose polymorphs, anhydrous ß-lactose stands out due to its thermodynamic stability. Thus, a simple method to produce the inter-conversion from monohydrate α-lactose to anhydrous ß-lactose was investigated employing a methanolic solution and different reaction variables (catalyst type, temperature, and stirring). Pure ß-lactose powders were synthesized in short reaction time (2-16 h), with a moderate temperature (reflux: 65 °C), and low concentration (0.014 M) of catalysts (NaOH and KOH). The SEM analysis revealed a change in the morphology from fine needles to tomahawk shape, which is dependent on the content of ß-lactose. The products were appropriately characterized using common analytic procedures (XRD, FTIR, and MDSC). In addition, an exhaustive discussion of the obtained results is provided. Finally, it seems to be the first work, where the inter-conversion to pure ß-lactose is reported successfully.

Evaluation of the Spray Drying Conditions of Blueberry Juice-Maltodextrin on the Yield, Content, and Retention of Quercetin 3-d-Galactoside.

The influence of the processing conditions during the spray drying of mixtures of blueberry juice (BJ) and maltodextrin (MX) was determined quantitatively by the analysis of variance (ANOVA), and qualitatively by the surface response plots (SRP). The effect of two independent variables (inlet temperature, and MX concentration), and one categorical variable (type of MX), was determined on the yield (Y), content (Q), and retention (R) of the antioxidant quercetin 3-d-galactoside. From the ANOVA results, the concentration was the main variable affecting Y and Q, while temperature had a negligible effect, and the low molecular weight MXs exhibited a better response. The physicochemical characterization showed that the powder appearance and microstructure remained unaffected, but size and morphology of the particles varied with the processing conditions. This study established the optimal processing conditions for the spray drying of BJ-MX, and the application limits of the MXs based on the molecular weight distribution.

Thermal Study of Polyols for the Technological Application as Plasticizers in Food Industry.

In this work is presented the complete thermal analysis of polyols by direct methods such as simultaneous thermogravimetric and differential thermal analyzer (TGA-DTA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), modulated DSC (MDSC), and supercooling MDSC. The different thermal events in the temperature range of 113⁻553 K were identified for glycerol (GL), ethylene glycol (EG), and propylene glycol (PG). Boiling temperature (TB) decreased as GL > EG > PG, but increased with the heating rate. GL showed a complex thermal event at 191⁻199 K, identified as the glass transition temperature (Tg) and devitrification temperature (Tdv), and a liquid⁻liquid transition (TL-L) at 215⁻221 K was identified as the supercooling temperature. EG showed several thermal events such as Tg and Tdv at 154 K, crystallization temperature (Tc) at 175 K, and melting temperature (Tm) at 255 K. PG also showed a complex thermal event (Tg and Tdv) at 167 K, a second devitrification at 193 K, and TL-L at 245 K. For PG, crystallization was not observed, indicating that, during the cooling, the liquid remained as an amorphous solid.

Technological Application of Maltodextrins According to the Degree of Polymerization.

Maltodextrin (MX) is an ingredient in high demand in the food industry, mainly for its useful physical properties which depend on the dextrose equivalent (DE). The DE has however been shown to be an inaccurate parameter for predicting the performance of the MXs in technological applications, hence commercial MXs were characterized by mass spectrometry (MS) to determine their molecular weight distribution (MWD) and degree of polymerization (DP). Samples were subjected to different water activities (aw). Water adsorption was similar at low aw, but radically increased with the DP at higher aw. The decomposition temperature (Td) showed some variations attributed to the thermal hydrolysis induced by the large amount of adsorbed water and the supplied heat. The glass transition temperature (Tg) linearly decreased with both, aw and DP. The microstructural analysis by X-ray diffraction showed that MXs did not crystallize with the adsorption of water, preserving their amorphous structure. The optical micrographs showed radical changes in the overall appearance of the MXs, indicating a transition from a glassy to a rubbery state. Based on these characterizations, different technological applications for the MXs were suggested.