Development and application of lipidomics for food research.

Lipidomics is an emerging and promising omics derived from metabolomics to comprehensively analyze all of lipid molecules in biological matrices. The purpose of this chapter is to introduce the development and application of lipidomics for food research. First, three aspects of sample preparation are introduced: food sampling, lipid extraction, and transportation and storage. Second, five types of instruments for data acquisition are summarized: direct infusion-mass spectrometry (MS), chromatographic separation-MS, ion mobility-MS, MS imaging, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Third, data acquisition and analysis software are described for the lipidomics software development. Fourth, the application of lipidomics for food research is discussed such as food origin and adulteration analysis, food processing research, food preservation research, and food nutrition and health research. All the contents suggest that lipidomics is a powerful tool for food research based on its ability of lipid component profile analysis.

Prospects for the application of traditional Chinese medicine network pharmacology in food science research.

There has always been a particular difficulty with in-depth research on the mechanisms of food nutrition and bioactivity. The main function of food is to meet the nutritional needs of the human body, rather than to exert a therapeutic effect. Its relatively modest biological activity makes it difficult to study from the perspective of general pharmacological models. With the popularity of functional foods and the concept of dietary therapy, and the development of information and multi-omics technology in food research, research into these mechanisms is moving towards a more microscopic future. Network pharmacology has accumulated nearly 20 years of research experience in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), and there has been no shortage of work from this perspective on the medicinal functions of food. Given the similarity between the concept of 'multi-component-multi-target' properties of food and TCM, we think that network pharmacology is applicable to the study of the complex mechanisms of food. Here we review the development of network pharmacology, summarize its application to 'medicine and food homology', and propose a methodology based on food characteristics for the first time, demonstrating its feasibility for food research. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Crossing the doorsteps for social reform: The social crusades of Florence Kelley and Ellen Richards.

This paper contrasts the research strategies of two women reformers, Florence Kelley and Ellen Swallow Richards, which entailed different strategies of social reform. In the early 1890s, social activist Florence Kelley used the social survey as a weapon for legal reform of the working conditions of women and children in Chicago's sweatshop system. Kelley's case shows that her surveys were most effective as "grounded" knowledge, rooted in a local community with which she was well acquainted. Her social survey, re-enacted by lawmakers and the press, provided the evidence that moved her target audience to legal action. Chemist and propagator of the Home Economics Movement Ellen Richards situated the social problem, and hence its solution, not in exploitative working conditions, but in the inefficient and wasteful usage of available resources by the poor. Laboratory work, she argued, would enable the development of optimal standards, and educational programs should bring these standards to the household by means of models and exhibits. With this aim, she constructed public spaces that she ran as food laboratories and sanitary experiments. Kelley and Richards thus crossed the doorsteps of the household in very different ways. While Florence Kelley entered the household to change the living and working conditions of the poor by changing the law, Richards flipped the household inside out by bringing women into hybrid public laboratory spaces to change their behavior by experiment and instruction.

Twenty-six years anniversary (1992-2018) of Food Research International: An overview of research trends.

Food Research International, the peer-reviewed international journal launched in 1992, celebrated its 26 years anniversary in 2018. Therefore, we presented an overview on the trending profile of Food Research International and its scientific achievements from 1992 to 2018 by identifying its trends in impact factor, h-index, journal rank, most cited articles, institutes, and countries. The data were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection and Scopus®. Several scientific achievements were observed in publications (a total of 6,751), impact factor (0.63-3.57), and citations (a total of 1,78,770) over the 26-year period. The most cited documents were related to the interdisciplinary research within food science and technology and contributed to strengthen the progress of science within the field. In 2007, a systematic review published in Food Research International explored the understanding of microencapsulation and their applications, which captured the scientific attention on microencapsulation in global research community. The journal published in vitro antioxidant assays that highly contributed to the process and analytical applications in food processing industries. Food Research International reported a good citing (cites given) and cited (cites received) relationship with the leading journals within the field. Brazil (301) was the most productive country with the highest contributions to the journal. Overall, these findings highlighted the evolution, quality, and productivity of the journal and provided an opportunity for early-career researchers to conduct more innovative studies in food science and publish in Food Research International.

La investigación alimentaria en Venezuela. Perspectivas y desafíos / Food research in Venezuela. Perspectives and challenges

La evaluación dietética es una de las herramientas más importantes de la epidemiología nutricional, su práctica continúa siendo un reto para los profesionales de la Nutrición, que actualmente se enfrentan a cambios en el perfil epidemiológico de la población, avances científicos y tecnológicos, escasez de recursos y desigualdades sociales. Los estudios dietéticos, como cualquier otro tipo de investigación evaluativa, ven comprometidas su validez y confiabilidad ante debilidades técnicas y metodológicas que deben ser atendidas, durante el diseño y la ejecución. Venezuela, al igual que el resto de los países latinoamericanos, tiene una larga historia de investigación alimentaria, encontrando estudios que difieren en objetivos, tamaño de la muestra, tipo de muestreo, técnicas aplicadas, tratamiento estadístico, análisis y uso de la información. Actualmente, es indiscutible la necesidad de acercarse al consumo real de alimentos y nutrientes por parte de la población venezolana, contar con una línea base es indispensable para la formulación, implementación y evaluación de estrategias de intervención eficaces para el alcance de mayores niveles de salud nutricional y la prevención de enfermedades, que garanticen una vida activa y productiva para la población. Las nuevas exigencias y retos exhortan a la revisión permanente de conceptos, enfoques y protocolos de evaluación dietética. La invitación es a transitar por el fascinante campo de la investigación alimentaria y tomar lo mejor de los dos mundos: la rigurosidad científica que siempre se debió mantener y las oportunidades y desafíos que caracterizan a los nuevos tiempos(AU)

Dietary assessment is one of the most important tools in nutritional epidemiology; its practice continues to be a challenge for nutrition professionals, who are currently facing changes in the epidemiological profile of the population, scientific and technological advances, scarcity of resources and social inequalities. Dietary studies, like any other type of evaluative research, have their validity and reliability compromised in the face of technical and methodological weaknesses that must be addressed during design and execution. Venezuela, like the rest of the Latin American countries, has a long history of food research, finding studies that differ in objectives, sample size, type of sampling, applied techniques, statistical treatment, analysis and use of information. Currently, the need to approach the real consumption of food and nutrients by the Venezuelan population is indisputable; having a baseline is essential for the formulation, implementation and evaluation of effective intervention strategies to achieve higher levels of nutritional health and the prevention of diseases that guarantee an active and productive life for the population. The new demands and challenges call for the permanent revision of concepts, approaches and protocols for dietary assessment. The invitation is to travel through the fascinating field of food research and take the best of both worlds: the scientific rigor that always had to be maintained and the opportunities and challenges that characterize the new times(AU)

Abelmoschus esculentus (L.): Bioactive Components' Beneficial Properties-Focused on Antidiabetic Role-For Sustainable Health Applications.

The main features of the okra, Abelmoschus esculentus (L.), are highlighted. The evaluation of interactions between biologically active compounds and other components of the food matrix can be considered as the first action in the investigation of potential benefits of this annual herb. Moreover, updated examples of current and innovative directions in an integrated and multidisciplinary approach are discussed, with particular attention to chemometrics. Among the main effects attributed to okra, its antidiabetic property is the focus. Finally, the use of okra in different fields will be discussed.

From Plant Compounds to Botanicals and Back: A Current Snapshot.

This work aims at giving an updated picture of the strict interaction between main plant biologically active compounds and botanicals. The main features of the emerging class of dietary supplements, the botanicals, are highlighted. Focus is also on the definition of actual possibilities of study approach and research strategies. Examples of innovative directions are given: assessment of interaction of bioactive compounds, chemometrics and the new goal of biorefineries. Current models of existing databases, such as plant metabolic pathways, food composition, bioactive compounds, dietary supplements, and dietary markers, are described as usable tools for health research. The need for categorization of botanicals as well as for the implementation of specific and dedicated databases emerged, based on both analytical data and collected data taken from literature throughout a harmonized and standardized approach for the evaluation of an adequate dietary intake.

Development of functional agricultural products utilizing the new health claim labeling system in Japan.

In April 2015, Consumer Affairs Agency of Japan launched a new food labeling system known as "Foods with Function Claims (FFC)." Under this system, the food industry independently evaluates scientific evidence on foods and describes their functional properties. As of May 23, 2017, 1023 FFC containing 8 fresh foods have been launched. Meanwhile, to clarify the health-promoting effects of agricultural products, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO) implemented the "Research Project on Development of Agricultural Products" and demonstrated the risk reduction of osteoporosis of ß-cryptoxanthin rich Satsuma mandarins and the anti-allergic effect of the O-methylated catechin rich tea cultivar Benifuuki. These foods were subsequently released as FFC. Moreover, NARO elucidated the health-promoting effects of various functional agricultural products (ß-glucan rich barley, ß-conglycinin rich soybean, quercetin rich onion, etc.) and a healthy boxed lunch. This review focuses on new food labeling system or research examining functional aspects of agricultural products.

Future development, innovation and promotion of European unique food: an interdisciplinary research framework perspective.

Unique food products constitute a very important element of European food business, culture, identity and heritage. Understanding the uniqueness of food in Europe from a research-based interdisciplinary perspective will be a critical factor in promoting the competitiveness of artisanal food industries going forward both locally and internationally. Success will support the competitiveness of the European food industry, in particular, small and medium enterprises, by enabling substantial product differentiation potential for producers and providing ample variety in food choice for the consumer. In addition, it will contribute to promotion of sustainable agriculture and development of rural areas, protecting them from depopulation. In order to meet the demands of a developing fundamental shift in European Union agricultural focus to greener, sustainable farming practices and wider rural development and to ensure success for local small-scale producers, this paper discusses the future direction of research in the field of unique European foods. The paper presents a perspective which promotes optimisation and innovation in unique food products in Europe through the integration of advanced knowledge and technologies. A framework is presented covering location, identity, perception and well-being as research areas needing synergy to bridge the research knowledge deficit in determination and specification of food identity in the European Union. The ultimate aim being promotion of sustainable agriculture and rural development, particularly in territories across the European Union where unique food is strategically and scientifically under-defined.