Editorial: Native yeasts: isolation, characterization, and food industry applications.

Enzymes are readily inactivated in harsh micro-environment due to changes in pH, temperature, and ionic strength. Developing suitable and feasible techniques for stabilizing enzymes in food sector is critical for preventing them from degradation. This review provides an overview on chitosan (CS)-based enzymes encapsulation techniques, enzyme release mechanisms, and their applications in food industry. The challenges and future prospects of CS-based enzymes encapsulation were also discussed. CS-based encapsulation techniques including ionotropic gelation, emulsification, spray drying, layer-by-layer self-assembly, hydrogels, and films have been studied to improve the encapsulation efficacy (EE), heat, acid and base stability of enzymes for their applications in food, agricultural, and medical industries. The smart delivery design, new delivery system development, and in vivo releasing mechanisms of enzymes using CS-based encapsulation techniques have also been evaluated in laboratory level studies. The CS-based encapsulation techniques in commercial products should be further improved for broadening their application fields. In conclusion, CS-based encapsulation techniques may provide a promising approach to improve EE and bioavailability of enzymes applied in food industry.HighlightsEnzymes play a critical role in food industries but susceptible to inactivation.Chitosan-based materials could be used to maintain the enzyme activity.Releasing mechanisms of enzymes from encapsulators were outlined.Applications of encapsulated enzymes in food fields was discussed.

Hydrocolloids: Structure, preparation method, and application in food industry

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a useful procedure with applications in industry and medicine, particularly in the lungs and brain area. In this paper, the development of a portable, reliable and low-cost EIT system for image reconstruction by using an embedded system (ES) is introduced herein. The novelty of this article is the hardware development of a complete low-cost EIT system, as well as three simple and efficient algorithms that can be implemented on ES. The proposed EIT system applies the adjacent voltage method, starting with an impedance acquisition stage that sends data to a Raspberry Pi 4 (RPi4) as ES. To perform the image reconstruction, a user interface was developed by using GNU Octave for RPi4 and the EIDORS library. A statistical analysis is performed to determine the best average value from the samples measured by using an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) with a capacity of 30 kSPS and 24-bit resolution. The tests for the proposed EIT system were performed using materials such as metal, glass and an orange to simulate its application in food industry. Experimental results show that the statistical median is more accurate with respect to the real voltage measurement; however, it represents a higher computational cost. Therefore, the mean is calculated and improved by discarding data values in a transitory state, achieving better accuracy than the median to determine the real voltage value, enhancing the quality of the reconstructed images. A performance comparison between a personal computer (PC) and RPi4 is presented. The proposed EIT system offers an excellent cost-benefit ratio with respect to a traditional PC, taking into account precision, accuracy, energy consumption, price, light weight, size, portability and reliability. The proposed EIT system has potential application in mechanical ventilation, food industry and structural health monitoring.

L-Glutaminases are enzymes that catalyze the cleavage of the gamma-amido bond of L-glutamine residues, producing ammonia and L-glutamate. These enzymes have several applications in food and pharmaceutical industries. However, the L-glutaminases that hydrolyze free L-glutamine (L-glutamine glutaminases, EC 3.5.1.2) have different structures and properties with respect to the L-glutaminases that hydrolyze the same amino acid covalently bound in peptides (peptidyl glutaminases, EC 3.5.1.43) and proteins (protein-glutamine glutaminase, EC 3.5.1.44). In the food industry, L-glutamine glutaminases are applied to enhance the flavor of foods, whereas protein glutaminases are useful to improve the functional properties of proteins. This review will focus on structural backgrounds and differences between these enzymes, the methodology available to measure the activity as well as strengths and limitations. Production methods, applications, and challenges in the food industry will be also discussed. This review will provide useful information to search and identify the suitable L-glutaminase that best fits to the intended application.

Peach gum polysaccharide (PGP), a natural biopolymer extracted from the resin of the peach tree, holds significant potential for applications in food, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical industries. However, detailed analysis and exploration of its physical and chemical properties remain limited. This study investigates the physicochemical properties, rheological behavior and emulsion stability of PGPs extracted using thermal (TPGP) and enzymatic (EPGP) methods. The results indicate that both polysaccharide fractions exhibit similar arabinogalactan (AG) structures, with high contents of arabinose and xylose, as evidenced by FTIR spectra and monosaccharide composition. However, high-performance size-exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) revealed differences in molecular weights and chain conformations, leading to distinct rheological behaviors. PGP solutions exhibited pseudoplastic flow behavior, with TPGP demonstrating higher viscosity due to its larger molecular weight (1.295 × 107 g mol−1). As the PGP concentration increased, gel strength and emulsion stability improved significantly. This study provides more insight into the rheological and emulsifying characteristics of PGPs extracted by varied methods, facilitating their potential applications in food industries.

Zymomonas mobilis is a gram-negative facultative anaerobic spore, which is generally recognized as a safe. As a promising ethanologenic organism for large-scale bio-ethanol production, Z. mobilis has also shown a good application prospect in food processing and food additive synthesis for its unique physiological characteristics and excellent industrial characteristics. It not only has obvious advantages in food processing and becomes the biorefinery chassis cell for food additives, but also has a certain healthcare effect on human health. Until to now, most of the research is still in theory and laboratory scale, and further research is also needed to achieve industrial production. This review summarized the physiological characteristics and advantages of Z. mobilis in food industry for the first time and further expounds its research status in food industry from three aspects of food additive synthesis, fermentation applications, and prebiotic efficacy, it will provide a theoretical basis for its development and applications in food industry. This review also discussed the shortcomings of its practical applications in the current food industry, and explored other ways to broaden the applications of Z. mobilis in the food industry, to promote its applications in food processing.

Hydrothermal treatment of lignocellulose waste for the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates copolymer with potential application in food packaging

Tyramine-derived hydroxycinnamic acid amines (HCAAT) are naturally occurring group of secondary metabolites present in various plant genera, such as Allium, Cannabis, Lycium, Polyganotum and Solanum. It belongs to the neutral, water-insoluble compounds and plays a role in plant growth, development and defence mechanism. The past two decades have seen a shift in the study of HCAAT from its role in plants to its potent biological activities. This review highlights the sources, roles in plants, biosynthetic pathways, metabolic engineering and chemical synthesis of HCAAT. The biological properties of HCAAT remain the focus in this paper, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, anti-melanogenesis and neuroprotective properties. The effects of food processing and technology on HCAAT are also discussed. Given the current research gap, this review proposes future directions on the study of HCAAT, as well as its potential applications in food and pharmaceutical industry.

Rice bran: Nutritional values and its emerging potential for development of functional food—A review

Throughout history, nature has been acknowledged for being a primordial source of various bioactive molecules in which human macular carotenoids are gaining significant attention. Among 750 natural carotenoids, lutein, zeaxanthin and their oxidative metabolites are selectively accumulated in the macular region of living beings. Due to their vast applications in food, feed, pharmaceutical and nutraceuticals industries, the global market of lutein and zeaxanthin is continuously expanding but chemical synthesis, extraction and purification of these compounds from their natural repertoire e.g., plants, is somewhat costly and technically challenging. In this regard microbial as well as microalgal carotenoids are considered as an attractive alternative to aforementioned challenges. Through the techniques of genetic engineering and gene-editing tools like CRISPR/Cas9, the overproduction of lutein and zeaxanthin in microorganisms can be achieved but the commercial scale applications of such procedures needs to be done. Moreover, these carotenoids are highly unstable and susceptible to thermal and oxidative degradation. Therefore, esterification of these xanthophylls and microencapsulation with appropriate wall materials can increase their shelf-life and enhance their application in food industry. With their potent antioxidant activities, these carotenoids are emerging as molecules of vital importance in chronic degenerative, malignancies and antiviral diseases. Therefore, more research needs to be done to further expand the applications of lutein and zeaxanthin.

The enzyme β-galactosidase can be obtained from a wide variety of sources such as microorganisms, plants, and animals. The use of β-galactosidase for the hydrolysis of lactose in milk and whey is one of the promising enzymatic applications in food and dairy processing industries. The enzyme can be used in either soluble or immobilized forms but the soluble enzyme can be used only for batch processes and the immobilized form has the advantage of being used in batch wise as well as in continuous operation. Immobilization has been found to be convenient method to make enzyme thermostable and to prevent the loss of enzyme activity. This review has been focused on the different types of techniques used for the immobilization of β-galactosidase and its potential applications in food industry.

The preparation of modified nano-starch and its application in food industry

Pomelo pectin and fiber: Some perspectives and applications in food industry

Caffeic acid (CA) as a strong antioxidant has lower solubility in nonpolar media, which limits its application in the food industry. To increase the lipophilicity of CA, 1‐caffeoylglycerol (1‐CG) was synthesized by lipase‐catalyzed transesterification of alkyl caffeates in solvent‐free system and its antioxidant capacity was investigated. Methyl caffeate was screened as the appropriate substrate from tested alkyl caffeates with a yield of 90.63%. Ethyl acetate was used for extracting 1‐CG from enzymatic reactants and could be easily recycled. The produced 1‐CG had 2.5‐ and 10‐fold lower values of half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) (10.86 and 3.99 μM) than butylated hydroxyanisole by 1,1‐diphenyl‐2‐picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging and β‐carotene‐linoleic acid assays, respectively. Thus, 1‐CG is an excellent antioxidant for application in the functional food industry. Using alkyl caffeates and glycerol as substrates to produce 1‐CG catalyzed by immobilized lipase in a solvent‐free system is a simple, selective, and safe bioprocess that can readily be achieved in the food industry, and the product 1‐CG could be widely applied in food, nutraceutical, and biotechnological products.

The demand for minimally processed food is increasing across the globe. In this regard, the application of non-thermal technologies for food processing is getting more attention. The use of plasma in food processing offers promising potential owing to its different attributes including non-thermal, enzyme inactivation, removal of pesticides toxin, less damage to food, low nutritional loss, and high quality of the final products. Plasma ensures food safety by inactivation of potential pathogens without distressing the quality indices of the food. Plasma is an advanced technique that has attracted scientists and technologists because of its astonishing capacity and potential applications in food industries which include food decontamination, inactivation of food-borne pathogenic microbes, and food packaging. The present review summarizes the key factors in plasma generation, its characteristics and applications in different food industries. Furthermore, it also addresses the principles, practices and limitations of plasma application in food safety, decontamination and current knowledge on the subject matter. These application of plasma in food industries improves the nutritional and textural aspects of food materials