Instant coffee as a source of antioxidant-rich and sugar-free coloured compounds for use in bakery: Application in biscuits.

Ammonia caramels are the most common antioxidant colour agent used in bakery formulations, although their high sugars content. An alternative could be coffee melanoidins, which are brown coloured compounds with antioxidant properties, readily available from instant coffee. However, high caffeine content is limiting its direct application. To evaluate the possibility of obtaining coloured melanoidin-rich, sugars- and caffeine-poor fractions from instant coffee, in this work, simple procedures based on their ethanol insolubility (fraction EtPp) or retention by ultrafiltration (fraction HWSn) were exploited. Melanoidins incorporation into biscuits formulation (amounts of 1, 5 and 10% w/w related to flour content) resulted in acceptable coloured products with higher antioxidant activity. The biscuits supplemented with 1% EtPp or HWSn had a low caffeine content. The caffeine of one espresso coffee was equivalent to 130 biscuits containing EtPp and 31 biscuits containing HWSn. Besides, both fractions did not promote extra formation of acrylamide or 5-hydroxymethylfurfural during baking.

Biosynthesis of gamma-linolenic acid and beta-carotene by Zygomycetes fungi.

Due to increasing demand for natural sources of both polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and beta-carotene, 28 Zygomycetes fungal soil isolates were screened for their potential to synthesize these biologically active compounds. Although all fungi produced C18 PUFAs, only nine strains also formed beta-carotene. Although Actinomucor elegans CCF 3218 was the best producer of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) (251 mg/L), Umbelopsis isabellina CCF 2412 was found to be the most valuable fungus because of the dual production of GLA (217 mg/L) and beta-carotene (40.7 mg/L). The calculated ratio of formed PUFAs provided new insight into activities of individual fatty acid desaturases involved in biosynthetic pathways for various types of PUFAs. The maximal activity of delta-9 desaturase was accompanied by high accumulation of storage lipids in fungal cells. On the other hand, maximal activity of delta-15 desaturase was found in strains synthesizing low amounts of oleic acid due to diminished delta-9 desaturase. Activities of delta-6 desaturase showed competition for fatty acids engaged in n3, n6, and n9 biosynthetic pathways. Such knowledge about fatty acid desaturase activities provides new challenges for the regulation of biotechnological production of PUFAs by Zygomycetes fungi.

[Level of lipids and apolipoproteins in obesity]. / Uroven' lipidov i apolipoproteinov pri ozhirenii.

The level of lipids and apolipoproteins was studied in the serum of patients with various degrees of obesity without hormonal impairments in order to find interrelationship between obesity and atherosclerosis development. 14 men and 42 women aged 19-59 years were examined. Concentration of triglycerides and very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) cholesterol was distinctly higher in obese patients of both sexes than in normal weight persons. However, content of apo A-I and apo B was similar in blood of both obese and normal persons, while concentration of apo E was higher in obesity. In obesity, the ratio HDL cholesterol/A-I was decreased, thus indicating that the HDL3/HDL2 ratio was altered, showing a decreased content of the latter subfraction. The findings suggest that impairment in metabolism of mainly HDL and VLDL subfractions occurred in patients with obesity. These impairments were atherogenic and may be responsible for a high risk for atherosclerosis and heart ischemic disease in obese patients.