Functional Components in Oil Crops

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 2440

Special Issue Editors

1. Institute of Food Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China
2. Key Laboratory of Agro-Products Processing, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Beijing 100193, China
Interests: structural modification and functional improvement of plant protein and its mechanism and applications in solubility and emulsification enhancement; construction and stabilization of Pickering emulsion based on plant protein and its mechanism and applications in margarine replacement; design of intelligent controlled release and delivery system based on plant protein and its mechanism and applications in the bioavailability enhancement of polyphenols
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Guest Editor Assistant
Institute of Food Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 2 Yuanminyuan West Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100193, China
Interests: the rational discovery of new natural products and the study of its chemistry and functional utilization; precise nutrition and health regulation based on natural products including polyphenols, peptides and plant protein

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Oil crops, including soybeans, rapeseed, sunflower seeds, and peanuts, are widely cultivated and consumed worldwide for their valuable edible oil. In recent years, increasing studies have shown that oil crops are not only valuable for edible oil, but also contain abundant functional components with potential health benefits and diverse applications in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries. For example, soybeans are recognized for their high content of PUFAs, tocopherols, and isoflavones, which have been explored for their potential anticancer and heart-protective properties. Rapeseed oil is abundant in both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, making it a valuable source of essential nutrients. Sunflower seeds are renowned for their high content of vitamin E, specifically gamma-tocopherol, offering potent antioxidant protection. Peanuts exhibit a plethora of functional components, including resveratrol, genistein, and phytosterols, which have been attributed to various health benefits, such as anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic properties.

In conclusion, understanding the composition and roles of functional components in oil crops facilitates the development of functional foods and nutraceuticals with enhanced nutrition, which is highly desirable in the food industry. This Special Issue aims to gather the most recent research about functional components in oil crops.

We welcome original research or reviews articles on but not limited to the following topics:

  • Novel methods for preparation and characterization of functional components from oil crops;
  • Influence of food processing and intermolecular interactions on the structure and characteristics of functional components from oil crops;
  • Nutritional properties of functional components from oil crops and the strategies required to improve stability and bioavailability;
  • Potential applications for meeting future nutritional and health needs and the specific mechanisms of action of functional components from oil crops;
  • The optimal intakes of functional components from oil crops for specific health benefits.

Dr. Aimin Shi
Guest Editor

Dr. Xiaojie Ma
Guest Editor Assistant

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Keywords

  • functional components
  • oil crops
  • nutrition
  • health benefits
  • application

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 3520 KiB  
Article
Effect of Physical Modifications on Physicochemical and Functional Properties of Walnut Protein
by Shanshan Li, Zhe Liu, Xue Hei, Chao Wu, Xiaojie Ma, Hui Hu, Bo Jiao, Jinjin Zhu, Benu Adhikari, Qiang Wang and Aimin Shi
Foods 2023, 12(19), 3709; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12193709 - 9 Oct 2023
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2143
Abstract
Walnut protein is a high-quality vegetable protein with promising applications in the food industry; however, its potential is hindered by low solubility and associated properties. We utilized various physical modification techniques (cold plasma; ball milling; superfine grinding; ultrasound; wet ball milling; and high-pressure [...] Read more.
Walnut protein is a high-quality vegetable protein with promising applications in the food industry; however, its potential is hindered by low solubility and associated properties. We utilized various physical modification techniques (cold plasma; ball milling; superfine grinding; ultrasound; wet ball milling; and high-pressure microjet) to enhance walnut proteins’ physicochemical and functional properties. The changes in particle size, microstructure, surface hydrophobicity, fluorescence, solubility, foaming, and emulsification were investigated. Cold plasma and ultrasound treatments minimally affected particle size and morphology. Cold plasma increased the particle size D4,3 from 145.20 μm to 152.50 μm. Ultrasonication reduced the particle size D4,3 to 138.00 μm. The variation was within ±10 μm, while the particle size of walnut protein significantly decreased after the other four modification treatments. The greatest variation in particle size was in the superfine grinding, with the D4,3 being reduced to 23.80 μm. Ultrasound treatment converted the β-sheet into an α-helix, while the other methods transformed the α-helix into a β-sheet. The dispersion stability notably improved after wet ball milling and high-pressure microjet treatments, which was accompanied by a significant increase in solubility from 6.9% (control) to 13.6% (wet ball milling) and 31.7% (high-pressure microjet). The foaming and emulsification properties were also enhanced through these modifications (foaming improved from 47% to 55.33% and emulsification improved from 4.32 m2/g to 8.27 m2/g). High-pressure microjet treatment proved most effective at improving solubility in the functional properties of walnut protein. These findings are expected to help broaden the potential utilization of walnut protein in the food industry, including in beverages and emulsions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Components in Oil Crops)
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