Natural Bioactive Compounds from Fruits and Vegetables: Extraction Technologies, Physicochemical Properties and Health Benefits

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Nutraceuticals, Functional Foods, and Novel Foods".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2024) | Viewed by 1807

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Departamento Acadêmico de Alimentos (DAALM), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Medianeira, Paraná, Brazil
Interests: extraction technologies; isolation of phytochemicals and bioactive compounds from fruits and vegetables; development of food formulations with functional properties; natural substances as substitutes for chemical additives (antioxidants; antimicrobial)
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Departamento Acadêmico de Alimentos (DAALM), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Medianeira, Paraná, Brazil
Interests: food chemistry; extraction; isolation, and identification of chemical compounds in natural products; plant food supplements; development of nutraceuticals and innovative food formulations with functional properties.
College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China
Interests: Plant Foods; Molecular Structure; Molecular Interactions; Nutrition Interventions
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fruits and vegetables are a source of many bioactive compounds that have yet to be comprehensively explored. Besides being a food source, plants have been used in traditional medicine for centuries based on empirical knowledge accumulated and transferred from generation to generation. Nowadays, consumers are increasingly concerned about their health, and thus many seek  higher-quality, contaminant-free natural products. Food products with natural ingredients are perceived to be of a higher quality those with synthetic ingredients and additives. Therefore, there is great interest in the incorporation of biologically active compounds from natural sources into formulations to promote health benefits; these include functional foods, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and medicinal supplementations, whose bioactive compounds interfere in the chemical and biological processes that cause diseases. This has created a demand in the production sector for approaches that minimize environmental impacts and either reduce or eliminate toxic waste production.

The food industry has attached importance to the use of plant extracts, essential oils, and/or their components as possible alternatives to synthetic food additives.

Although available at a low cost, many plants are still unknown and underused by a large portion of the population. In the context of current climate change, it is increasingly accepted that monoculture production will not be sufficient to feed the growing world population. Complementary alternatives could become essential tools for establishing sustainable production systems, contributing to human diet and providing a source of extra income for rural populations via added-value products.

Furthermore, consumer preference for healthier foods, with a particular focus on foods from the plant kingdom, is a global trend.

This Special Issue hopes to further disseminate the existing research on extraction and isolation techniques and the  nutritional and functional properties of bioactive compounds from various fruits and vegetables, aiding the food industry in finding new ingredients and natural additives that can meet consumer expectations for healthier foods.

Prof. Dr. Cristiane Canan
Dr. Daneysa Lahis Kalschne
Dr. Jing Zhao
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • nutrition
  • nutraceuticals
  • proximate composition
  • green technology
  • functional potential
  • biological properties
  • food sustainability
  • food sovereignty

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

18 pages, 1774 KiB  
Article
Coffee Extract as a Natural Antioxidant in Fresh Pork Sausage—A Model Approach
by Vanessa Tanara Fetsch, Daneysa Lahis Kalschne, Cristiane Canan, Éder Lisandro de Moraes Flores, Marcelo Caldeira Viegas, Gabrielle Caroline Peiter, Ricardo Fiori Zara, Joana Soares Amaral and Marinês Paula Corso
Foods 2024, 13(9), 1409; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13091409 - 3 May 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1238
Abstract
Consumers are increasingly looking for healthy foods without the addition of synthetic additives. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of coffee extracts as a natural antioxidant in fresh pork sausage. Firstly, the conditions for obtaining coffee green extracts were [...] Read more.
Consumers are increasingly looking for healthy foods without the addition of synthetic additives. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of coffee extracts as a natural antioxidant in fresh pork sausage. Firstly, the conditions for obtaining coffee green extracts were optimized (Central Composite Rotatable Design 23, variables: extraction time, ethanol–water ratio, and sample–solvent ratio) in an ultrasound bath (70 °C). The response variables were the bioactive compounds levels and antioxidant activity. Valid models were obtained (p ≤ 0.05, R2 > 0.751), with higher bioactive content and antioxidant activity in the central point region. Extracts of Robusta and Arabica coffee green (RG and AG) and medium roast (RR and AR) obtained, and central point (10 min, an ethanol concentration of 30%, and a sample–solvent ratio of 10 g/100 mL) and optimized (14.2 min, 34.2%, and 5.8 g/100 mL) parameters were characterized. The RG presented a significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher content of caffeine (3114.8 ± 50.0 and 3148.1 ± 13.5 mg/100 g) and 5-CQA (6417.1 ± 22.0 and 6706.4 ± 23.5 mg/100 g) in both extraction conditions, respectively. The RG and RR coffee presented the highest antioxidant activity. Two concentrations of RG and RR coffee extracts were tested in fresh pork sausage. The Robusta coffee extract presented the highest antioxidant activity in both roasted and green states. However, when applied to a meat product, the extract prepared with RG coffee showed better results, with efficiency in replacing synthetic antioxidants (content of malonaldehyde/kg of sample below 0.696 ± 0.059 in 20 days of storage), without altering the sensory attributes of the product (average scores above 7.16 ± 1.43 for all attributes evaluated). Therefore, the RG coffee extract was a suitable alternative as a natural antioxidant applied to fresh pork sausage. Full article
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