Search

This study assessed the technological potential and bioactive compounds present in purple yampee ( Dioscorea trifida L.f.) lyophilized powder, peeled and whole flour, as well as the tuber peel, starch residual fiber, and wastewater mucilage. Although most values approached neutrality, flour showed a lower pH and high density, while greater acidity was observed in the mucilage. Color differed statistically and perceptibly between all samples, with similar values of °hue to purple flours from other sources, and the maximum chroma was found in lyophilized pulp and lightness in fiber. Average moisture levels around 7.2% and water activity levels of 0.303 (0.194 for whole flour) in fractions suggested favorable storability, while the interaction of the powders with water was similar to other root and tuber powdered derivatives. Yampee periderm had the highest swelling power, oil absorption capacity, water holding capacity, and absorption index and capacity. Mucilage had a higher solubility index and outstanding emulsion activity, greater than 90%. Twelve anthocyanins, with new reports of petunidin derivatives for the species, and more than 30 phytochemicals were identified through advanced liquid chromatography techniques. The greatest amounts of pinitol and myo-inositol were found in the mucilage, and sucrose, glucose, and fructose prevailed in the other powders. Successfully characterized yampee fractions showed high potential as functional food ingredients.

The fruit of the cashew, a tree belonging to the family Anacardiaceae, is composed of approximately 10% nut (cashew) and 90% stalk or pseudofruit, usually discarded in situ and fermented in the soil. This review identifies cashew pseudofruit's physicochemical characteristics and bioactive compounds and their possible relationship to health benefits. Different processing techniques have been used to preserve the pseudofruit, and the effect of these techniques on its nutrients is also reviewed in this work. Cashew is a highly perishable product with moisture content above 80% w/w and 10% w/w sugars. It also has a high content of polyphenols, flavonoids, and tannins and high antioxidant properties that are best preserved by nonthermal processing techniques. The pseudofruit presents the high inhibitory activity of α-amylase and lipase enzymes, has anti-inflammatory and body weight reduction properties and healing activity, and controls glucose levels, insulinemia, and insulin resistance. For all these reasons, cashews have been promoted as a propitious food/ingredient for preventive and therapeutic management of different pathologies such as diabetes, dyslipidemia, obesity, hypertension, fatty liver, and acne. Moreover, it has positive effects on the intestinal microflora, among others. This pseudofruit has a high potential for the development of functional foods.

The effect of the QTL involved in climacteric ripening ETHQB3.5 on the fruit VOC composition was studied using a set of Near-Isogenic Lines (NILs) containing overlapping introgressions from the Korean accession PI 16375 on the chromosome 3 in the climacteric 'Piel de Sapo' (PS) genetic background. ETHQB3.5 was mapped in an interval of 1.24 Mb that contained a NAC transcription factor. NIL fruits also showed differences in VOC composition belonging to acetate esters, non-acetate esters, and sulfur-derived families. Cosegregation of VOC composition (23 out of 48 total QTLs were mapped) and climacteric ripening was observed, suggesting a pleiotropic effect of ETHQB3.5 . On the other hand, other VOCs (mainly alkanes, aldehydes, and ketones) showed a pattern of variation independent of ETHQB3.5 effects, indicating the presence of other genes controlling non-climacteric ripening VOCs. Network correlation analysis and hierarchical clustering found groups of highly correlated compounds and confirmed the involvement of the climacteric differences in compound classes and VOC differences. The modification of melon VOCs may be achieved with or without interfering with its physiological behavior, but it is likely that high relative concentrations of some type of ethylene-dependent esters could be achieved in climacteric cultivars.

This review aims to study the alternatives to conventional industrial starches, describing uncommon sources along with their technological characteristics, processing, and performance on food products. Minor components remaining after extraction play an important role in starch performance despite their low percentage, as happens with tuber starches, where minerals may affect gelatinization. This feature can be leveraged in favor of the different needs of the food industry, with diversified applications in the market being considered in the manufacture of both plant and animal-based products with different sensory attributes. Hydrocolloids, different from starch, may also modify the technological outcome of the amylaceous fraction; therefore, combinations should be considered, as advantages and disadvantages linked to biological origin, consumer perception, or technological performance may arise. Among water-based system modifiers, starches and nonstarch hydrocolloids are particularly interesting, as their use reaches millions of sales in a multiplicity of specialties, including nonfood businesses, and could promote a diversified scheme that may address current monocrop production drawbacks for the future sustainability of the food system.

A climacteric aromatic near-isogenic line (NIL) of melon ( Cucumis melo L.) SC3-5-1 contained an introgression of the non-climacteric Korean cultivar "Shongwan Charmi" accession PI 161375 (SC) in the genetic background of the non-climacteric cultivar "Piel de Sapo" (PS). The aroma production was monitored during ripening at 21 °C in intact fruit using headspace sorptive bar extraction (HSSE). Bars were composed of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and aromas were desorbed and analyzed by gas-chromatography mass-spectrometry. The aromatic profile was composed of 70 aromatic compounds plus 21 alkanes with a predominance of esters, particularly acetate (2-methylbutyl acetate, 2-methylpropyl acetate, hexyl acetate, and phenylmethyl acetate). Some compounds were severely affected by postharvest time. The acetate esters (3-methylbutyl acetate, butan-2-yl acetate and phenylmethyl acetate) decreased with ripening and sulfur-derived compounds ( S -methyl butanethioate and S -methyl 3-methylbutanethioate) increased gradually with ripening. A few compounds increased at the senescence phase (propyl ethanoate). Other compounds such as hexadecanoic acid showed a marked decrease after harvest, some decreasing from a relative maximum at harvest (2-methylpropyl hexanoate; n -hexanoic acid; nonanoic acid).