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5.1
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Foods
Special Issues
Development and Characterization of Innovative Food Matrices and Ingredients
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Development and Characterization of Innovative Food Matrices and Ingredients

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: 10 June 2026 | Viewed by 2299

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Luisa Mannina

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologie del Farmaco, Sapienza Università di Roma, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, Rome, Italy
Interests: food chemistry; advanced food analysis; NMR-based metabolomics; high resolution NMR; chemometrics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Mattia Spano

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department for the Promotion of Human Science and Quality of Life, San Raffaele University, Via di Val Cannuta 247, 00166 Rome, Italy
Interests: sample preparation; extraction protocols development; metabolomics; food analysis; nuclear magnetic resonance
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We invite you to contribute to this Special Issue, titled “Development and Characterization of Innovative Food Matrices and Ingredients”.

In recent years, the search for new food matrices or ingredients has become a pivotal issue in the Food Science sector. The remarkable interest in this topic is due to several factors, mainly related to the need for nutritionally valuable and environmentally sustainable food alternatives.

Moreover, new food matrices/ingredients often have biological activities that make them potentially applicable in the nutraceutical sector.

The present Special Issue will gather papers that cover innovative trends in this field, namely the chemical, nutritional, safety, and biological characterization of innovative food matrices and ingredients; development of approaches to change and/or improve food matrices nutritional profiles; and isolation of single compounds or mixtures to be used as food ingredients or nutraceuticals.

Prof. Dr. Luisa Mannina
Dr. Mattia Spano
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • novel food
  • food analysis
  • food processing
  • food safety
  • food quality
  • food biological activity
  • nutraceuticals

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 3991 KB  
Article
Presoaking with Sodium Selenite Promotes Accumulation of Polyphenols and GABA in Foxtail Millet Sprouts Under NaCl Stress
by Huiying Fu, Shuaiduo Sun, Yaoxi Liu, Guowei Man, Junjie Hao and Jinle Xiang
Foods 2026, 15(10), 1778; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15101778 - 18 May 2026
Viewed by 230
Abstract
The effects of presoaking with sodium selenite (Na2SeO3) solution on the polyphenols and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in foxtail millets during germination under NaCl stress condition were investigated, and the key processing parameters, including Na2SeO3 concentration, [...] Read more.
The effects of presoaking with sodium selenite (Na2SeO3) solution on the polyphenols and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in foxtail millets during germination under NaCl stress condition were investigated, and the key processing parameters, including Na2SeO3 concentration, presoaking time, presoaking temperature and NaCl concentration, were optimized via response surface methodology (RSM) based on total phenolic content (TPC) and GABA content of foxtail millet sprouts. The inhibition of sprout growth caused by salt stress was alleviated by presoaking with Na2SeO3, which did not alter phenolic compositions, resulting in a significant increase in the levels of both phenolics and GABA. The optimal germination parameters were 42 mg/L Na2SeO3, 9.8 h soaking time, 30 °C soaking temperature, and 110 mmol/L NaCl. Under these conditions, the measured TPC and GABA content were 837.22 mg FAE/100 g and 281.68 mg/kg, respectively, which closely approximated the predicted values. Correspondingly, the main free phenolic compounds 3-p-coumaroylquinic acid and N-p-coumaroylserotonin increased by 2.94 and 3.34 times, respectively, and the predominant bound phenolic compounds trans-ferulic acid and trans-p-coumaric acid increased by 2.28 and 6.39 times, respectively. Meanwhile, the total and organic selenium contents of the sprouts reached 14.74 and 12.02 mg/kg dry weight, respectively. This study provides a practical technology for preparing selenium-enriched foxtail millet sprouts with enhanced phenolic compounds and GABA, which can serve as a novel functional food resource. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Development and Characterization of Innovative Food Matrices and Ingredients)
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15 pages, 1098 KB  
Article
Optimization of Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction of Anthocyanins from Torch Ginger
by Menuk Rizka Alauddina, Viki Oktavirina, Widiastuti Setyaningsih, Mercedes Vázquez-Espinosa and Miguel Palma
Foods 2026, 15(3), 450; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15030450 - 27 Jan 2026
Viewed by 706
Abstract
The growing interest in using edible flowers as functional ingredients has increased the demand for reliable and sustainable strategies to recover and characterize their bioactive compounds. Torch ginger is a tropical species rich in anthocyanins. In this study, an ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) method [...] Read more.
The growing interest in using edible flowers as functional ingredients has increased the demand for reliable and sustainable strategies to recover and characterize their bioactive compounds. Torch ginger is a tropical species rich in anthocyanins. In this study, an ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) method was developed, optimized, and validated for the efficient recovery of anthocyanins from torch ginger flowers, with a clear focus on food-related applications. A Box–Behnken experimental design was applied to evaluate the influence of solvent composition, temperature, solvent-to-sample ratio, and pH on anthocyanin yield, using chromatographic responses. Solvent composition and solvent-to-sample ratio were identified as the most influential parameters, and effective extraction was achieved under mild temperature and pH conditions. The optimized conditions consisted of 84% methanol in water as the extraction solvent, a temperature of 30 °C, a solvent-to-sample ratio of 20:1 (mL g−1), and a pH of 5.6. Kinetic studies revealed that a 5 min extraction time maximized recovery while preventing compound degradation. The method was successfully applied to different torch ginger varieties, revealing a strong correlation between flower color and anthocyanin concentration. This research provides a fast, reliable, and environmentally friendly approach for assessing anthocyanin content in torch ginger flowers. The results support the valorization of this edible flower as a potential source of natural colorants and bioactive ingredients, contributing to ingredient selection, quality control, and the future development of functional foods and clean-label products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Development and Characterization of Innovative Food Matrices and Ingredients)
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18 pages, 1230 KB  
Article
Biofortification of Sea Bream Fillets with Artichoke Polyphenols: Effects on Antioxidant Capacity, Shelf Life, and Sensory Quality
by Rossella Vadalà, Giovanna Lo Vecchio, Laura De Maria, Daniela Metro, Roberta Tardugno, Nicola Cicero and Rosaria Costa
Foods 2026, 15(1), 175; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15010175 - 5 Jan 2026
Viewed by 794
Abstract
A functional seafood product was obtained by biofortifying fish fillets with polyphenols extracted from artichoke by-products. Two fortification techniques—vacuum immersion (VI) and spray coating followed by electroporation (SCE)—were applied and compared with untreated control (CTR) samples. The treated by vacuum immersion (TRT-VI) group [...] Read more.
A functional seafood product was obtained by biofortifying fish fillets with polyphenols extracted from artichoke by-products. Two fortification techniques—vacuum immersion (VI) and spray coating followed by electroporation (SCE)—were applied and compared with untreated control (CTR) samples. The treated by vacuum immersion (TRT-VI) group showed the highest antioxidant power (DPPH scavenging: 42.5 ± 3.2% vs. 19.6 ± 1.5% in CTR. Colorimetry revealed significant shifts in lightness (L*), red-green component (a*), and yellow-green component (b*) values in raw and cooked fillets. In the TRT-VI group the microbiological shelf life was extended by approximately 4–5 days. Sensory analysis revealed that, despite of bitterness and astringency, key attributes were maintained. Phenolic profiling identified caffeoylquinic acids as the dominant compounds in both artichoke extracts and fortified fillets (range 0.5–304.5 mg·100 g−1). In this study the development of functional seafood products has been implemented through the valorisation of an agri-food by-product and the exploitation of emerging fortification technologies. Key outputs include the assessment of the nutritional value of the fortified fish fillets and the extension of shelf life without compromising key sensory attributes. Future studies could be directed toward the optimisation of formulations and bioavailability of the incorporated polyphenols. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Development and Characterization of Innovative Food Matrices and Ingredients)
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