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For health and safety concerns, traditional high-calorie sweeteners and artificial sweeteners are gradually replaced in food industries by natural and low-calorie sweeteners. As a natural and high-quality sugar substitute, steviol glycosides (SvGls) are continually scrutinized regarding their safety and application. Recently, the cultivation of organic stevia has been increasing in many parts of Europe and Asia, and it is obvious that there is a vast market for sugar substitutes in the future. Rebaudioside A, the main component of SvGls, is gradually accepted by consumers due to its safe, zero calories, clear, and sweet taste with no significant undesirable characteristics. Hence, it can be used in various foods or dietary supplements as a sweetener. In addition, rebaudioside A has been demonstrated to have many physiological functions, such as antihypertension, anti-diabetes, and anticaries. But so far, there are few comprehensive reviews of rebaudioside A. In this review article, we discuss the physicochemical properties, metabolic process, safety, regulatory, health benefits, and biosynthetic pathway of rebaudioside A and summarize the modification methods and state-of-the-art production and purification techniques of rebaudioside A. Furthermore, the current problems hindering the future production and application of rebaudioside A are analyzed, and suggestions are provided., (© 2022 Institute of Food Technologists®.)

Decontamination of meat is commonly practiced to get rid of or decrease the microbial presence on the meat surface. Dielectric barrier discharge cold atmospheric plasma (DBD-CAP) as innovative technology is a food microbial inactivation technique considered in high regard by food scientists and engineers in present times. However, cold atmospheric plasma application is at the experimental stage, due to lack of sufficient information on its mode of action in inactivating microbes, food shelf-life extensibility, whereas, the nutritional value of food is preserved. In this review, we have appraised recent work on DBD-CAP concerning the decontamination treatment of meat products, highlighting the processing value results on the efficacy of the DBD-CAP microbial inactivation technique. Also, the paper will review the configurations, proposed mechanisms, and chemistry of DBD-CAP. Satisfactory microbial inactivation was observed. In terms of DBD-CAP application on sensory evaluation, inferences from reviewed literature showed that DBD has no significant effect on meat color and tenderness, whereas in contrast, TBARS values of fresh and processed meat are affected. DBD seems economically efficient and environmentally sustainable., (© 2021 Institute of Food Technologists®.)