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The Chenopodium genus includes250 species, among which only quinoa, pigweed, djulis, and kaniwa have been explored for starches. Chenopodium is a non-conventional and rich source of starch, which has been found effective in producing different classes of food. Chenopodium starches are characterized by their smaller granule size (0.4-3.5 μm), higher swelling index, shorter/lower gelatinization regions/temperature, good emulsifying properties, and high digestibility, making them suitable for food applications. However, most of the investigations into Chenopodium starches are in the primary stages (isolation, modification, and characterization), except for quinoa. This review comprehensively explores the major developments in Chenopodium starch research, emphasizing isolation, structural composition, functionality, hydrolysis, modification, and application. A critical analysis of the trends, limitations, and scope of these starches for novel food applications has also been provided to promote further scientific advancement in the field.

Green chilies (variety SHP4884) blanched at 90 °C and 70 °C, for 3 min were solar dried with and without phase change material (PCM), under natural (NC) and forced convection (FC) conditions. Effect of solar drying with and without PCM on color, bioactive compounds and level of aflatoxins in chili were compared. PCM reduced solar drying time by 17-20% in NC and by 35–38% in FC, as compared to that without PCM. It also improved average drying rate to 0.40–0.51 kg/kg-h from 0.40–0.44 kg/kg-h. Effective diffusivity was 31.85–39.58% higher during NC and 51.27–53.2% higher in FC, during drying with PCM than that without PCM. It helped in maximum retention of green color with ΔE value 0.47 ± 0.03 in NC solar drying compared to other trials. PCM assisted solar drying of chili blanched at 70 °C in FC exhibited better retention of total phenols (2.43 ± 0.26 mg GAE/g DW, total flavonoids (0.68 ± 0.16 mg CE/g DW), antioxidant activity (83.72 ± 4.30% RSA, 5.67 ± 0.30 mg TEAC/g DW in FRAP), ascorbic acid (196.71 ± 1.25 mg/ 100 g) and total carotenoids (1.40 ± 0.37 mg/g). PCM restricted Aflatoxin B1 below 0.25 ppb in solar dried chili; however it varied between 4.05 and 6.85 ppb when PCM was not used.

With the huge energy demand inevitably exacerbates the non-renewable resources depletion and ecological-social challenges, renewable energy has become a crucial participant in sustainable strategy. Biorefinery emerged as a sustainable approach and recognized promising transformation platforms for products, to achieve circular bioeconomy which focuses on the biomass efficient and sustainable valorization, promotes resource regeneration and restorative. The emerged biowaste biorefinery has proved as sustainable approach for integrated bioproducts and further applied this technology in industrial, commercial, agricultural and energy sectors. Based on carbon neutral sustainable development, this review comprehensive explained the biowaste as renewable resource generation and resource utilization technologies from the perspective of energy, nutrient and material recovery in the concept of biorefinery. Integrate biorefinery concepts into biowaste management is promise for conversion biowaste into value-added materials and contribute as driving force to cope with resource scarcity, climate changes and huge material demand in circular bioeconomy. In practice, the optimal of biorefinery technologies depends on environmentally friendly, economic and technical feasibility, social and policy acceptance. Additionally, policy interventions are necessary to promote biowaste biorefinery implements for circular bioeconomy and contribute to low-carbon cleaner environment.

A detailed characterisation of spent hen meat hydrolysate (SMH) powders was done in this study. Briefly, SMH was obtained by enzymatic hydrolysis of whole spent hen meat of Indian layer bird breed (BV-300) using Flavourzyme® at optimised temperature (54 °C) and pH 6.6 for 30 min. The spray-dried (SD-SMH) hydrolysate powder showed significantly (p

Microalgae are photosynthetic microbes that can synthesize compounds of therapeutic potential with wide applications in the food, bioprocessing and pharmaceutical sector. Recent research advances have therefore, focused on finding suitable economic substrates for the sustainable cultivation of microalgae. Among such substrates, food derived waste specifically from the starch, meat, dairy, brewery, oil and fruit and vegetable processing industries has gained popularity but poses numerous challenges. Pretreatment, dilution of waste water supernatants, mixing of different food waste streams, utilizing two-stage cultivation and other biorefinery approaches have been intensively explored for multifold improvement in microalgal biomass recovery from food waste. This review discusses the advances and challenges associated with cultivation of microalgae on food waste. The review suggests that there is a need to standardize different waste substrates in terms of general composition, genetically engineered microalgal strains, tackling process scalability issues, controlling wastewater toxicity and establishing a waste transportation chain.

Blueberry (Vaccinium spp.) is one of the five major healthy foods for humans and is recognized as the "king of the world fruit", which has attracted great interest in the phytogenic prebiotics market. Blueberry fruit is favored for its delicious taste and its various functional ingredients (organic acids, phenolics, minerals and vitamins) with multitherapeutic value (antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, neuroprotective and vision improvement properties). However, fresh blueberries are highly perishable since they are vulnerable to mechanical damage and microbial decay, resulting in a short shelf life and inevitable subsequent economic losses. Due to the strong seasonal availability and limited storage period of blueberries, their derived bioactive products have emerged as functional foods. Novel food developments that are currently available include blueberry fruit juice, wine, vinegar, jam, dried fruit, pulp powder, colorant and flavoring additives used in cake, biscuit, bread, yogurt, and jelly. This review systematically describes the current status of blueberry fruit as bioactive ingredients and valuable food products with greater nutraceutical health potential of blueberries.

In the present investigation, novel nano-curcumin enriched milk cream powder (CP) was formulated using microfluidization (at 100 MPa/2 passes) followed by spray drying (at three different temperatures: 150, 170 and 190 °C) with sodium caseinate (N) and gum arabic (G) as encapsulating materials. The effect of processing and encapsulating materials on the powder functionalities, particle size, encapsulation efficiency, morphology, fluorescence properties, bioaccessibility and cytotoxicity were studied. Results showed that NCP (spray dried at 190 °C) had significantly higher yield (68 %), encapsulation efficiency (EE) (93 %), and lower particle size (724 nm) than that of GCP. Fluorescence spectra of the powders revealed characteristic 'blue shift' phenomenon indicating better encapsulation and protection of the nano-curcumin corroborating EE results. SEM images showed distinctive features of NCP and GCP; wherein, NCP had shrivelled and irregular surface as compared to the GCP which exhibited round shape and smooth surface. TEM results confirmed that curcumin particles were in the nano-scale (50-250 nm) for both NCP and GCP. In vitro simulated digestion showed significantly high (88.48 %) curcumin bioaccessibility of NCP plus remarkable inhibition of HepG2 cells; whereas, no cytotoxicity was observed in Caco-2 cells by MTT assay. Formulation's applicability was shown by reconstituting powders as a 'cream spread' wherein high sensory acceptability observed. Sodium caseinate was found to be an excellent delivery vehicle for the fortification of nano-curcumin in the cream powder. To our knowledge, this is the first report of formulating a novel nano-curcumin fortified cream powder which has tremendous potential as a functional food ingredient.

Oligosaccharides are the sugars made up of 3-10 saccharides units and one of the classes of prebiotics obtained from various biowastes. These biowastes could include rice straw, husk, spent coffee grounds, sugarcane bagasse, spent tea leaves, fruits and vegetables peel, corn stalk, corn stover, deoiled meals and brewer's spent grains etc., which can be used as a resource for oligosaccharides production. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the suitability of different biowaste resources for oligosaccharide production followed by critical analysis of the recent updates and production methods. The review also discusses the tremendous prebiotic potential of oligosaccharides in food applications with prospects for further advancements in the field.

The aim of this work was to study the application of genetic algorithm (GA) in modelling and optimization of cellulose production by Trichoderma reesei from pea hull. Enzyme activity of cellulase was determined using Filter Paper Activity (FPA) assay. Optimization of process parameters was performed using mathematical (MO) and genetic optimizers to obtain combination of variables for highest possible enzyme activity. GA generated a higher value of cellulase activity (0.353 U/mL) as compared to MO (0.302 U/mL). The values of independent variables in set (GA, MO) were: agitation speed (127, 120 rpm), %H2O2 concentration (10.36, 5.0), cultivation time (112, 91 h). The investigation highlights that GA could be used as a potential optimizer for processes involving waste utilization.

Spent tea leaves (STL) are generated after the extraction of liquor from processed tea leaves and are regarded as an underutilized waste. STL are rich in essential amino acids, ω-6 and ω-3 fatty acids, alkaloids (theobromine and caffeine), polyphenols (catechin, theaflavins and rutin) and minerals (Ca, P, K, Mg, Mn) that could be utilized for the production of industrially important products. Vermicomposting, anaerobic digestion, silage preparation and fermentation are currently used as low cost methods for the bioconversion of STL to a usable form. Structural, morphological and chemical modification of STL after suitable bioconversion enables its application in the development of biopolymers, biofuels, catechin derivatives, biochar, absorbents for dye, and for removal of Cd, Hg, Cr(IV), As(V) and aspirin. This review discusses the composition, characterization, bioconversion and value added product generation from STL while highlighting prospective applications of STL in developing battery electrodes, nanocatalysts, insulation materials and edible bioactive peptides.

Wastewater management has significant interest worldwide to establish viable treatment techniques to ensure the availability of clean water. The specialities of nanocellulose for this particular application is due to their high aspect ratio and accessibility of plenty of -OH groups for binding with dyes, heavy metals and other pollutants. This review aggregates the application of nanocellulose for wastewater treatment particularly as adsorbents of dyes and heavy metals, and also as membranes for filtering various other contaminants including microbes. The membrane technologies are proven to be effective relating to their durability and separation effectiveness. The commercial scale application of nanocellulose based materials in water treatment processes depend on various factors like routes of synthesis, surface modifications, hydrophilic/hydrophobic, porosity, durability etc. The recent developments on production of novel adsorbents or membranes encourage the implementation of nanocellulose based cleaner technologies for wastewater treatment.

Damaged wheat grains (DWGs) are relinquished into the environment and functions as potential powerhouse for pathogenic microorganisms. These substrates are rich in starch that could be used for attractive applications after conversion to useable form. In this work, enzymatic hydrolysis of DWG flour (10–20 % w/v) was done using α-amylase (1–5 % v/v) over 30−120 min to convert DWG starch to fermentable sugars. SEM micrographs and FTIR analysis revealed the breakdown of the spherical and ellipsoidal surface of the starch granules and formation of large pores at α-amylase attachment sites. Genetic algorithm (GA) mediated artificial neural network (ANN) model was applied to predict the sugars production in the enzyme−catalyzed hydrolysis process. ANN-GA model with 12 hidden layer neurons and Levenberg Maquardt training algorithm was defined to predict enzymatic hydrolysis data with 93.2 % accuracy. Random residuals generated by the model confirmed that the influence of extraneous variables was limited thereby, proving the model efficient.

Mapping the drying characteristics of biological products is essential for drying time estimation and reduction of energy consumption. The knowledge of mass transfer parameters during different drying conditions is required for process and equipment design and is of great industrial importance. In this work, an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) approach was adopted to model the vacuum drying kinetics of moringa leaves. Levenberg–Marquardt’s training algorithm with LOGSIGMOID and TANSIGMOID hidden layer transfer functions gave superior results for the prediction of moisture content and moisture ratio, respectively. Further, a comparative evaluation of the predictive capability of ANN and 7 different semi-empirical models was performed. The Page model was found suitable to fit the experimental data with a R2 comparable to that of ANN. However, the MSE observed for ANN (1.05 × 10−6) was significantly lower than that of Page model (2.56 × 10-6 to 5.81 × 10-4). Effective moisture diffusivity and mass transfer coefficient increased with increase in temperature from 0.71 × 10-9 to 1.91 × 10-9 m2/s and, 1.07 × 10-7 to 4.07 × 10-7 m/s, respectively. Activation energy for drying of moringa leaves was calculated as 42.84 kJ/mol which showed moderate energy requirements for moisture diffusion. Specific energy consumed was directly affected by drying time and varied from 6.07 to 22.26 kW h/kg. Drying temperature of 60 °C resulted in higher drying rate, lower drying time and energy consumption and therefore, recommended for drying of Moringa olifera leaves.

Maintaining the safety and quality of food are major concerns while developing biomaterial based food packaging. It offers a longer shelf-life as well as protection and quality control to the food based on international standards. Nano-biotechnology contributes to a far extent to make advanced packaging by developing multifunctional biomaterials for potential applications providing smarter materials to consumers. Applications of nano-biocomposites may thus help to deliver enhanced barrier, mechanical strength, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties to novel food packaging materials. Starch derived bioplastics, polylactic acid and polyhydroxybutyrate are examples of active bioplastics currently in the food packaging sector. This review discusses the various types of biomaterials that could be used to improve future smarter food packaging, as well as biomaterials’ potential applications as food stabilizers, pathogen control agents, sensors, and edible packaging materials. The regulatory concerns related to the use of biomaterials in food packaging and commercially available biomaterials in different fields are also discussed. Development of novel biomaterials for different food packaging applications can therefore guarantee active food packaging in future.

Sugarcane juice contains unstable particles that readily undergo agglomeration and sedimentation. In this work, microfluidization was used as a processing tool to generate a possible solution to the sedimentation problem in sugarcane juice for the first time. Stoke's law was used to determine the particle sedimentation rate. Experiments were devised to explore the majority of the pressure range of microfluidization (50–200 MPa) with variation in processing cycles (1–7). Particle size and apparent viscosity of sugarcane juice were determined. Microscopic analysis was also carried out to visualize the effect of microfluidization on the particles in the juice. Microfluidization in the pressure range of 50-150 MPa with less than 7 cycles of processing reduced the size of suspended juice particles successfully. Results revealed that 150 MPa pressure with 5 cycles was suitable for sugarcane juice processing as it generates the lowest particle size (~437 nm) and minimum particle sedimentation rate (4.91 × 10−2 mm/day).

Worldwide worries upsurge concerning environmental pollutions triggered by the accumulation of plastic wastes. Biopolymers are promising candidates for resolving these difficulties by replacing non-biodegradable plastics. Among biopolymers, polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), are natural polymers that are synthesized and accumulated in a range of microorganisms, are considered as promising biopolymers since they have biocompatibility, biodegradability, and other physico-chemical properties comparable to those of synthetic plastics. Consequently, considerable research have been attempted to advance a better understanding of mechanisms related to the metabolic synthesis and characteristics of PHAs and to develop native and recombinant microorganisms that can proficiently produce PHAs comprising desired monomers with high titer and productivity for industrial applications. Recent developments in metabolic engineering and synthetic biology applied to enhance PHA synthesis include, promoter engineering, ribosome-binding site (RBS) engineering, development of synthetic constructs etc. This review gives a brief overview of metabolic routes and regulators of PHA production and its intervention strategies.

Biocatalysts have wider applications in various industries. Biocatalysts are generating bigger attention among researchers due to their unique catalytic properties like activity, specificity and stability. However the industrial use of many enzymes is hindered by low catalytic efficiency and stability during industrial processes. Properties of enzymes can be altered by protein engineering. Protein engineers are increasingly study the structure-function characteristics, engineering attributes, design of computational tools for enzyme engineering, and functional screening processes to improve the design and applications of enzymes. The potent and innovative techniques of enzyme engineering deliver outstanding opportunities for tailoring industrially important enzymes for the versatile production of biochemicals. An overview of the current trends in enzyme engineering is explored with important representative examples.

Conventional plastics take a long time to decompose posing a threat to the environment and the general health of all life forms. Scientific advancements towards replacing these petrochemically derived plastics have led to a stride in biopolymer research with emphasis on poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB). However, current methods for PHB production are either too expensive or are environmentally unsustainable. Therefore, the aim of this work was to develop a green and environmentally sustainable process for the production of PHB from damaged wheat grains (DWG) as a novel cost-effective substrate. Initially, sequential enzymatic hydrolysis of the damaged grain flour was carried out using α -amylase and glucoamylase. Hydrolysate exhibiting highest reducing sugar content was subjected to fermentation using Bacillus sp NII2 strain. The process was evaluated based on sugars consumption, cell biomass and PHB production. Maximum PHB production (1.305 g/L or 34% accumulation) was achieved at 8.84% (v/v) inoculum concentration, 32.07 g/L reducing sugar concentration in the medium and 72 h incubation time. Regression models were formulated with reasonable accuracy (R2>0.8). Analysis of the resulting biopolymer through nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (1H-NMR, 13C-NMR) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed the presence of characteristic PHB groups (-CH, -CH2, -CH3, -C=O, -C-O-C-). X-ray diffraction showed partial crystallinity of PHB biopolymer with degree of crystallinity of 65.2%. Scanning electron microscopy revealed the presence of non-uniformly distributed pores on the otherwise relatively continuous surface of PHB. Thermal analysis of PHB using thermogravimetry (TGA/DTG-DTA) showed that the biopolymer was stable up to 228 °C. Optical properties revealed good UV-C blocking abilities of the synthesized PHB. The PHB produced from DWG opens a new avenue for its sustainable utilization and application in development of biodegradable food packaging.

Curcumin has phenomenal medicinal properties but is insoluble in water which restricts its bioavailability. Here, we report utilization of tragacanth gum for delivery of curcumin by developing a stable gum-curcumin (GC) suspension using microfluidization. Microfluidization of GC suspension was performed at 100 & 200 MPa pressure with 1–12 processing passes. Results indicated decrease in particle size with increase in number of microfluidization passes (303 nm after 100 MPa/12th pass with 1.5 g/dL tragacanth concentration). SEM of control and TEM of 100 MPa/12th pass sample showed distinct differences in the morphology induced by microfluidization wherein spherical curcumin particles were found dissolved in gum matrix with effective size of 272 nm. Total soluble solids (TSS) of microfluidized suspension increased with increment in number of passes with highest TSS of 1.34 and 1.36 °Bx at 100 & 200 MPa, respectively after 12 processing passes. Differential scanning calorimetry revealed melting point of control and microfluidized samples in the range of 118.6–124.7 °C. Rheology of microfluidized GC suspensions indicated a pseudoplastic (shear thinning) behavior under applied stress. Results suggest that microfluidization can be used to produce sub-micron size tragacanth gum based curcumin suspension for potential application as curcumin delivery system in functional foods and nutraceuticals.

Despite vast coastline and huge cultivation of macroalgae in India, bioactive compounds in the edible macroalgae have not been well characterized. Ultrasound assisted extraction and conventional extraction techniques were compared & characterized by extracting three edible macroalgae, viz., Sargassum wightii, Ulva rigida and Gracilaria edulis in methanol. Ultrasound assisted extract (120 min) of S. wightii showed significantly higher (p

The effect of multi-cycle multi-pressure microfluidization on the rheological properties of sugarcane juice has been reported for the first time in this work. Microfluidization pressure was varied in defined steps from 50 to 200 MPa with 1–7 cycles of processing. Rheological measurements were carried out at 30, 40 and 50 °C. Increase in microfluidization pressure up to 150 MPa showed an increase in consistency index. Beyond 150 MPa, an observed reduction in consistency index was attributed to the reduction in carbohydrate polymer chains, agglomeration, and molecular degradation. At low processing pressures, microfluidized sugarcane juice exhibited pseudoplastic behavior but showed a dilatant tendency at higher pressures (>150 MPa). Microfluidization increased the flow behavior index by 24–38% as compared to unprocessed sugarcane juice. No prominent trend in rheological data was observed with change in microfluidization cycles. Consistency index was reduced with increase in temperature and was found in the range of 1.5 × 10−3 ─ 5.3 × 10−3 Pa.sn whereas the flow behavior index was found in the range of 0.71 ─ 0.99. A GA mediated ANN model with 12 hidden layer neurons was found to predict the rheological properties of microfluidized sugarcane juice with a reasonable level of accuracy (R2 = 0.86–0.93).