Natural extracts and plant essential oils (EOs) have long been recognized as valid alternatives to synthetic food additives owing to their proved wide-spectrum antimicrobial capacity. The main aim of this study was to characterize the physical, mechanical, water barrier, microstructural and antimicrobial properties of chitosan-gelatin blend films enriched with cinnamon, citronella, pink clove, nutmeg and thyme EOs. The film microstructure determined by scanning electron microscopy, showed that all active films had heterogeneous surface: in particular, films including cinnamon, nutmeg and thyme EOs showed remarkable pores on the surface. The possible interaction of chitosan-gelatin blend film with incorporated EOs was investigated using Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. Presence of new bands and changes in the FT-IR spectra confirmed intermolecular interactions between the chitosan-gelatin matrix and the EOs. The antimicrobial activity of films was determined using the disk diffusion assay. Active films inhibited the growth of four major food bacterial pathogens including Campylobacter jejuni, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella typhimurium and, among the tested EOs, thyme was the most effective (p<0.05).
Blend and bilayer bio-based active films were developed by solvent casting technique, using chitosan (CS) and gelatin (GL) as biopolymers, glycerol as a plasticizer and lauroyl arginate ethyl (LAE) as an antimicrobial compound. Blend films had higher tensile strength and elastic modulus and lower water vapor permeability than bilayer films (p < 0.05). Bilayer films demonstrated as effective barriers against UV light and showed lower transparency values (p < 0.05). FT-IR spectra indicated that interactions existed between CS and GL due to electrostatic interactions and hydrogen bond formation. However, the addition of LAE did not interfere in the network structure. Active films incorporated with LAE (0.1%, v/v) inhibited the growth of Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium and Campylobacter jejuni. This study highlighted the development of blend and bilayer bio-based active films based on CS and GL enriched with LAE for food packaging applications with improved physical, mechanical, barrier and antimicrobial properties.
Digestate was evaluated as an alternative and sustainable growing medium and nutrient solution in the hydroponic cultivation of baby leaf lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.). Nine hydroponic combinations of substrate and fertilization (agriperlite + standard solution, agriperlite + liquid digestate, solid digestate + standard solution, solid digestate + liquid digestate, soil + standard solution, peat moss + standard solution; peat moss + liquid digestate, pelleted digestate + standard solution and pelleted digestate + liquid digestate) were tested and compared for the cultivation of baby leaf lettuce, in three different experiments. During the crop cycles, yield as other agronomical and microbiological parameters were investigated. The combination of agriperlite + liquid digestate, solid digestate + standard solution and pelleted digestate + standard solution enhanced plant growth by affecting the root, the shoot, the total dry weight and SPAD parameters, in the all investigated experiments (+32%, +40%, +29%, +17% respectively). Based on the obtained results, digestate represents a sustainable and alternative growing media or nutrient solution for the production of baby leaf lettuce cultivated in hydroponic system.
Cold storage coupled with gaseous ozone represents a potential strategy to reduce or inhibit the presence of pathogenic and spoilage bacteria in a food storage cold chamber. This study aims to evaluate the impact of gaseous ozone treatment (0.05 ppm at exposure times of 30 and 60 min) on the bacterial contamination of internal surface and air in a cold chamber (3°C) intended for food storage. The bacterial load of internal surfaces was reduced by 0.99 ± 0.24 and 1.35 ± 0.27 log after 30 and 60 min ozone treatment, respectively. Airborne bacterial load was reduced by 0.93 ± 0.24 log after 30 min ozone treatment and became non‐detectable after 60 min. Gaseous ozone treatments (0.05 ppm at exposure times of 1, 2, 6, 24, 30, and 48 hr) of the cold chamber were investigated to evaluate the effectiveness of this technology against Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella enterica Typhimurium, Campylobacter jejuni, and Pseudomonas fluorescens cultured in broth cultures. Ozone treatment was effective against C. jejuni since the population at the highest concentration of inoculum (3.34 log CFU/plate) was reduced by 2.23 log after 1 hr and it was completely undetectable after 2 hr. S. enterica and E. coli showed the highest resistance to short ozone treatment since 6 hr treatment did not show antibacterial activity whereas after 24 hr treatment around 2 log reduction was observed for both pathogens. Short ozone treatment did not affect L. monocytogenes viability. P. fluorescens showed high sensitivity to short treatments, with 0.75–1.32 log reductions after 1 hr and further 0.22–0.53 log reductions after 6 hr.
The current concern about meat consumption tackles many aspects: health, social life, food behaviours, animal welfare, natural resources exploitation. People are more sensitive about these topics and they are shifting individual food habits in favour of a more plant-based diet. Surveys provide a concise view of the increasing percentage of both vegetarians and vegans. The aim of the present research was to develop adequate recipes to prepare food products that mimic the shape and the texture of traditional würstel and Mortadella, focusing on the Italian market. The challenge faced was multiple: firstly, to maintain the similar characteristics of the traditional foods; secondly, to accomplish the consumer's requests; thirdly, to enlarge the market share of the food industries. The results obtained demonstrated that "mimicwürstel" and "mimic-mortadella" were created with vegan allowed ingredients and proteins of vegetal origin. In the case of "mimic-mortadella" the addition of tofu cubes tried to recreate the visual effect of fat globules.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.