Food Biotechnology Research Articles

The development of supplemental multimedia learning modules and their impact on student learning in food biotechnology courses

AbstractThe rapid growth of online education has created opportunities to integrate multimedia learning tools into complex scientific disciplines like food biotechnology. This study aimed to develop and evaluate supplementary online course modules on gene expression analysis, protein engineering tools, and fermentation genomics for undergraduate food biotechnology education. Based on cognitive load theory and multimedia learning principles, the modules incorporated focused visual media and interactive knowledge checks. The study involved 85 students in an introductory food microbiology course and 25 students in an upper‐level food biochemistry elective at a large public university. Module implementation included tracking student usage through learning management system analytics, collecting qualitative feedback, and assessing learning outcomes via exam performance. Results showed that 73%–76% of students voluntarily accessed the modules, with average engagement times of 5–8 min per module. Student feedback highlighted the modules' effectiveness in clarifying textbook content through replayable examples and real‐world scenarios. Comparison of exam scores revealed a 6%–10% improvement in performance on module‐related items compared to overall exam averages. Qualitative feedback indicated that students found the visual representations and interactive elements helpful for clarifying complex concepts. This study demonstrates the potential of well‐designed multimedia modules to support student learning in food biotechnology education, providing a model for expanding such resources in food science curricula.

The effectiveness of misinformation corrective strategies and implications for consumers' food preferences and policy attitudes

AbstractThis study investigates the effect of food biotechnology misinformation on consumer demand and attitudes toward bioengineered food and tests the effectiveness of pre‐bunking and debunking mitigation strategies. Using choice experiment data from a sample of 1270 U.S. consumers, we find that exposure to misinformation has a significant effect on consumers' food preferences and policy attitudes. We also find that while pre‐bunking is an effective mitigating strategy, debunking by itself is not sufficient. Our findings suggest that preemptively warning consumers about misinformation and the tactics used to spread it is more effective than merely correcting the misinformation afterward.

Maternal consumption of yoghurt activating the aryl hydrocarbon receptor increases group 3 innate lymphoid cells in murine offspring

ABSTRACT Indole derivatives are microbial metabolites of the tryptophan pathway involved in gut immune homeostasis. They bind to the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), thereby modulating development of intestinal group 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILC3) and subsequent interleukin-22 production. In mice, indole derivatives of the maternal microbiota can reach the milk and drive early postnatal ILC3 development. Apart from the gut microbiota, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) also produce indole compounds during milk fermentation. Using germ-free mice, the aim of our study was to test if maternal intake of a dairy product enriched in AhR-activating indoles produced by fermentation could boost maturation of the intestinal innate immune system in the offspring. A set of 631 LAB strains were genetically screened for their potential to produce indole compounds. Among these, 125 strains were tested in combination with standard strains to produce yoghurts that were screened for their ability to activate AhR in vitro using the HepG2–AhR–Luc cell line. The most active yoghurt and a control yoghurt were formulated as pellets and fed to germ-free dams during pregnancy and lactation. Analysis of the offspring on postnatal day 14 using flow cytometry revealed an increase in the frequency of small intestinal lamina propria NKp46 +ILC3 s in the pups born to dams that had consumed the purified diet containing an AhR-active yoghurt (AhrY-diet) compared to control yoghurt (ConY-diet). Selection of LABs based on their ability to produce a fermented dairy able to activate AhR appears to be an effective approach to produce a yoghurt with immunomodulatory properties. IMPORTANCE Key progresses in the sequencing and functional annotation of microbial organisms have revolutionized research in the fields of human metabolism and food biotechnology. In particular, the gut microbiome is now recognized as an important mediator of the impact of nutrition on human metabolism. Annotated genomes of a large number of bacteria are now available worldwide, which selectively transform food through fermentation to produce specific bioactive compounds with the potential to modulate human health. A previous research has demonstrated that the maternal microbiota shapes the neonatal immune system. Similarly, this report shows that lactic acid bacteria can be selected to produce fermented food that can also modulate postnatal intestinal immunity.

Comparative Analysis of Pretreatment Methods for Fruit Waste Valorization in Euglena gracilis Cultivation: Impacts on Biomass, β-1,3-Glucan Production, and Photosynthetic Efficiency

This study explored the sustainable valorization of fruit waste extracts from sugarcane bagasse (SB), banana peel (BP), and watermelon rind (WR) for Euglena gracilis biomass and β-1,3-glucan production. The extracts were prepared using water extraction (WE), high-temperature and pressure treatment (HTP), and dilute sulfuric acid treatment (DSA). The DSA-treated extracts consistently yielded the best results. E. gracilis cultured in SB-DSA showed the highest cell density with a 2.08-fold increase compared to the commercial HUT medium, followed by BP-DSA (1.35-fold) and WR-DSA (1.70-fold). Photosynthetic pigment production increased significantly, with chlorophyll a yield being highest in SB-DSA (1.90-fold increase). The chlorophyll a/b ratio and total carotenoid content also improved, indicating enhanced light-harvesting capacity and photoprotection. Photosynthetic efficiency, measured by chlorophyll fluorescence, notably improved. The maximum quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm) increased by up to 25.88% in SB-DSA, suggesting reduced stress and improved overall photosynthetic health. The potential photochemical efficiency (Fv/F0) showed even greater improvements: up to 40.53% in SB-DSA. Cell morphology analysis revealed larger cell aspect ratios, implying a more active cellular physiological state. β-1,3-glucan yield also increased by 23.99%, 12.92%, and 23.38% in SB-DSA, BP-DSA, and WR-DSA, respectively. This study demonstrates the potential of pretreated fruit waste as a cost-effective and sustainable medium for E. gracilis cultivation, offering the dual benefits of waste valorization and high-value compound production. These findings contribute to the development of more efficient biorefinery processes and align with the circular economy principles in food biotechnology.

Social Aspects of Food and Nutrition: An Overview

This article explores the multifaceted social aspects of food and nutrition, examining how cultural, economic, and social factors influence dietary habits and health outcomes. It discusses sociological perspectives, including structural functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism, highlighting their relevance to food and nutrition. The article also addresses food as a social problem, focusing on issues such as food safety, biotechnology, and dietary disorders, and the role of public health policies in managing these concerns. Cultural influences on food and nutrition are analyzed with examples from various societies, illustrating how traditional foods, religious beliefs, and globalization shape dietary practices. Social influences on eating behavior, including family, peer, and societal norms, are explored, emphasizing their implications for nutritional interventions. The article delves into socio-economic inequalities in nutrition, discussing barriers to healthy eating faced by low-income populations and proposing strategies to address these disparities. Finally, the emerging field of nutritional epigenetics is examined, considering its social and biological implications for long-term health outcomes.

Laccase: A Green Biocatalyst Offers Immense Potential for Food Industrial and Biotechnological Applications.

Laccase, a multipurpose biocatalyst, is widely distributed across all kingdoms of life and plays a key role in essential biological processes such as lignin synthesis, degradation, and pigment formation. These functions are critical for fungal growth, plant-pathogen interactions, and maintenance of soil health. Due to its broad substrate specificity, multifunctional nature, and environmentally friendly characteristics, laccase is widely employed as a catalyst in various green chemistry initiatives. With its ability to oxidize a diverse range of phenolic and nonphenolic compounds, laccase has also been found to be useful as a food additive and for assessing food quality parameters. Ongoing advancements in research and technology are continually expanding the recognition of laccase's potential to address global environmental, health, and energy challenges. This review aims to provide critical insights into the applications of laccases in the biotechnology and food industry.

Biodiversity assessment and environmental risk analysis of the single line transgenic pod borer resistant cowpea.

The discussion surrounding biological diversity has reached a critical point with the introduction of Nigeria's first transgenic food crop, the pod borer-resistant (PBR) cowpea. Questions have been raised about the potential risks of the transgenic Maruca vitrata-resistant cowpea to human health and beneficial insects. Public apprehension, coupled with social activists' calling for the removal of this crop from the nation's food market, persists. However, there is a lack of data to counter the assertion that cultivating PBR cowpea may have adverse effects on biodiversity and the overall ecological system. This research, with its multifaceted objective of examining the environmental safety of PBR cowpea and assessing its impact on biodiversity compared to its non-transgenic counterpart, IT97KN, is of utmost importance in providing the necessary data to address these concerns. Seeds for both the transgenic PBR cowpea and its isoline were obtained from the Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR) Zaria before planting at various farm sites (Addae et al., 2020). Throughout the experiment, local cultural practices were strictly followed to cultivate both transgenic and non-transgenic cowpeas. Elaborate taxonomic keys were used to identify arthropods and other non-targeted organisms. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to evaluate potential modifications in all ecological niches of the crops. The lmer function of the R package lme4 was used to analyze diversity indices, including Shannon, Pielou, and Simpson. The Bray-Curtis index was used to analyzed potential modifications in the dissimilarities of non-targeted organisms' communities. Examination of ecological species abundance per counting week (CW) revealed no disruption in the biological properties of non-targeted species due to the cultivation of transgenic PBR cowpea. Analysis of species evenness and diversity indices indicated no significant difference between the fields of transgenic PBR cowpea and its isoline. Principal component analysis results demonstrated that planting PBR cowpea did not create an imbalance in the distribution of ecological species. All species and families observed during this study were more abundant in transgenic PBR cowpea fields than in non-transgenic cowpea fields, suggesting that the transformation of cowpea does not negatively impact non-targeted organisms and their communities. Evolution dynamics of the species community between transgenic and non-transgenic cowpea fields showed a similar trend throughout the study period, with no significant divergence induced in the community structure because of PBR cowpea planting. This study concludes that planting transgenic PBR cowpea positively influences biodiversity and the environment.

Risk Propensity and Acceptance of Gene-edited and Genetically Modified Food among US Consumers: A Comparison between Plants and Animal Products

Abstract Utilizing online survey data of US consumers, this study examines the extent to which consumers' acceptance of genetically modified (GM) and gene-edited (GE) food is driven by their risk attitudes. Our results indicate that individuals with high-risk propensity are more likely to accept both GM and GE food than individuals with low- and medium-risk propensity. Our results also find differences in consumers' attitudes toward plants and animal products in the context of both GM and GE. Intriguingly, these attitudinal differences can be explained by consumers' risk propensities. Specifically, both low- and medium-risk propensity consumers differentiate between plants and animal products; the latter is less acceptable than the former, indicating a tendency to have more concerns about the application of biotechnology to animals than plants. However, individuals with high-risk propensity do not differentiate between GM and GE plants and animal products. Our results suggest that policymakers, the food industry, and researchers need to consider these attitudinal differences while studying consumer attitudes toward GM and GE food. Failing to capture these attitudinal differences in studies focusing on consumer behavior toward GM and GE food may result in either overestimating or underestimating consumer response.

Impacts of knowledge and trust on consumer perceptions and purchase intentions towards genetically modified foods.

Genetically Modified Foods (GMF) have emerged as a significant topic within the global food industry, provoking extensive debates over their safety and impact on consumer choices. This research aims to explore the impact of knowledge and trust in GMF on Vietnamese consumers' perceptions and their subsequent purchase intentions. By employing a quantitative methodology, this study gathered data from 424 valid respondents. The research model focuses on five constructs: knowledge, trust, perceived benefits, perceived risks, and purchase intentions. The data was analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to test hypotheses and examine the interrelationships among these constructs. The results showed that increased knowledge of GMF is linked to heightened perceptions of benefits and reduced perceptions of risks, thereby elevating purchase intentions. Trust in GMF significantly enhances perceived benefits but does not significantly affect risk evaluation, although it is positively correlated with purchase intentions. Moreover, perceptions of greater benefits are positively associated with higher purchase intentions, whereas increased risk perceptions negatively influence them. These results underscore the complex relationship among knowledge, trust, perceived benefits, and perceived risks in shaping consumer purchase intentions toward GMF. The study proposes a comprehensive model delineating how knowledge and trust impact Vietnamese consumers' perceptions and purchase intentions regarding GMF. These findings provide implications for policymakers, business managers, and marketers, emphasizing the importance of disseminating transparent information, prioritizing trust-building, and adopting nuanced communication strategies. By effectively enhancing perceived benefits and addressing perceived risks, these strategies aim to foster positive consumer intentions and behaviors toward GMF.

Webometric analysis of the visibility, reach and impact of food science research publications: institute of agricultural research and training, ibadan (1972-2023)

This study evaluated the visibility, reach and impact of Food Science research publications from the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IAR&T) in Ibadan, Nigeria, over the period 1972-2023. Utilizing webometric analysis, data were collected from Google Scholar, Research Gate, and Scopus, focusing on citation metrics, article counts, and online engagement. A total of 745 scholarly articles across various food science disciplines, including Food Microbiology, Human Nutrition, Meat Science, Nutritional Biochemistry, and Food Science Technology and Biotechnology, were analyzed. The study incorporated log file data from the 14 food scientists’ profiles, examining a total of 9,392 cited works. These citations were derived from materials indexed by Google Scholar (5,221 citations), Research Gate (3,358 citations) and Scopus (813 citations). Findings revealed that Food Science Technology and Biotechnology had the highest number of articles and citations, with 257 articles (64.4% of total) on Google Scholar and 3,108 citations (60% of total). Research Gate showed 171 articles (65% of total) with 2,249 citations (67% of total), while Scopus recorded 52 articles (63% of total) with 449 citations (55.2% of total). A paired t-test measuring the evolution of access and growth in published works indicated a statistically significant increase (p < 0.05) across all specializations in Food Science. Citations for Food Science/Technology and Biotechnology rose from 19 (1%) in 1972-1997 to 3,089 (99%) in 1998-2023, highlighting substantial growth in visibility and usage. The geographical distribution analysis showed that Africa had the highest citation metrics, followed by Europe, North America with Asia and South America having relatively lower impact. The study underscores the critical role of digital platforms in enhancing research impact and suggested that improved dissemination strategies are needed, particularly for areas with lower reach such as food Microbiology. These findings provided valuable insights for researchers aiming to enhance the visibility and impact of scientific research in food Science.

Impact of microelectrode geometry and surface finish on enzymatic biosensor performance

Food production, environmental protection, biotechnology, and medicine, all depend on biosensors for measuring specific biological molecules. Among biosensors, enzymatic electrochemical biosensors have received particular attention due to their simple operation and enzymes’ inherent specificity. Researchers have extensively explored novel materials and biological designs to improve performance (i.e., sensitivity, linearity, limit of detection, and response time). However, in comparison, physical and geometrical design has not received the same attention. To this end, we compared platinum (Pt) microelectrodes with circular or fractal geometry with the same surface area (2D geometry). We also studied the effect of 3D geometry by nanostructuring both circular and fractal microelectrodes via electroplating Pt black. Fractal Pt black microelectrodes displayed the highest current density, charge storage capacity, and sensitivity towards H2O2. Next, we immobilized glucose oxidase onto various microelectrode geometries by microcontact stamping. Fractal Pt and Pt black glucose biosensors were 91.7% and 83.3% more sensitive than circular counterparts. Circular and fractal Pt black glucose biosensors were 63.0% and 55.9% more sensitive than Pt counterparts. Fractal geometry also provided better linearity and limit of detection. We modified enzyme layer thickness through multiple layer stamping and found a trade-off whereby increasing thickness increased sensitivity but also increased response time. Lastly, we developed a COMSOL Multiphysics numerical model to interpret the amperometric data and the impact of physical design on critical parameters. The work here will serve as a guideline for improving enzymatic electrochemical and other biosensors via physical design, which is simpler to modify than material or biological design.

Sustainable fresh strawberry consumption: environmental, genetically modified food, and climate concerns in Europe and North Africa

Background and gap in the literatureSeasonal strawberries are a tasty fruit with many significant health and environmental benefits. Despite these attributes, the determinants influencing strawberry consumption remain underexplored. Few existing research studies are focused on conventional factors, such as taste, freshness, and price, leaving aside some critical, current dimensions, such as consumers’ environmental attitude, sustainability, genetically modified (GM) food knowledge, and climate change concerns. This article aims to explore the impact of the aforementioned factors on the purchasing behavior of strawberries among consumers.MethodologyA designed questionnaire for a final sample of 2,378 consumers from Italy, Germany, France, Spain, Turkey, and Morocco was used to collect data about sociodemographic attributes, strawberry purchasing habits, respondents’ level of knowledge on the topic of GM food, and climate change issue. The generalized ordinal logistic approach was performed deriving from the ordinal qualitative type of our two variables of interest (seasonal and non-seasonal strawberries purchase) and relaxing the assumption of parallel lines.Main resultsFrom the sociodemographic factors, the more educated individuals, living in urban areas and having higher income levels are more likely to purchase frequently seasonal strawberries, while older people buy less often non-seasonal strawberries. Individuals who are more aware of sustainability issues, exhibit sustainable behaviors, and have greater concerns about climate change are more likely to buy non-seasonal strawberries less frequently, which is the most important result of our analysis.ImplicationsThese results offer a comprehensive understanding of other drivers than the conventional ones related to seasonal and non-seasonal strawberry purchase patterns, giving significant insights for policymakers in formulating tailored interventions for other dimensions: promoting sustainable agricultural practices (following the seasonality of the fruit), increasing consumer awareness about the environmental implications of the non-seasonal fruit purchases, and shifting individual eating patterns toward more sustainable and healthy ones (fresh and seasonal fruit consumption).

A Review on Fish Skin-Derived Gelatin: Elucidating the Gelatin Peptides-Preparation, Bioactivity, Mechanistic Insights, and Strategies for Stability Improvement.

Fish skin-derived gelatin has garnered significant attention recently due to its abundant availability and promising bioactive properties. This comprehensive review elucidates various intricacies concerning fish skin-derived gelatin peptides, including their preparation techniques, bioactive profiles, underlying mechanisms, and methods for stability enhancement. The review investigates diverse extraction methods and processing approaches for acquiring gelatin peptides from fish skin, emphasizing their impact on the peptide composition and functional characteristics. Furthermore, the review examines the manifold bioactivities demonstrated by fish skin-derived gelatin peptides, encompassing antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer properties, elucidating their potential roles in functional food products, pharmaceuticals, and nutraceuticals. Further, mechanistic insights into the functioning of gelatin peptides are explored, shedding light on their interactions with biological targets and pathways. Additionally, strategies aimed at improving the stability of gelatin peptides, such as encapsulation, modification, and integration into delivery systems, are discussed to extend the shelf life and preserve the bioactivity. Overall, this comprehensive review offers valuable insights into using fish skin-derived gelatin peptides as functional ingredients, providing perspectives for future research endeavors and industrial applications within food science, health, and biotechnology.

Biodiversity and biotechnological potential of cultivable Halophilic bacteria from Slana voda (Oravska Polhora, Slovakia) natural salt spring

AbstractHalophilic microorganisms are of immense importance in various fields of biotechnology. There is a multitude of actual or potential applications in the research of environmentally friendly applications in biodegradation, decolorization, food biotechnology, and biopolymers production. Thirty-eight strains of halophilic bacteria were isolated from the Slana voda (Slovakia, Central Europe) natural salt spring, with a tolerance of up to 20% of NaCl. The Halomonas genus accounted for more than 35% of the cultivable microbiota, followed by Shewanella and Pseudoaltermonas genera. More than 55% of bacterial isolates were able to produce at least one of the tested hydrolases (cellulase, lipase, amylase, protease) and three of them were positive for all four enzyme activities. Bacterial isolates showed a relatively high ability to degrade synthetic dyes, namely congo red, crystal violet, malachite green, methylene blue, methyl red, and safranin (5.26, 42.11, 44.74, 63.16, 92.18, and 18.42% of isolates respectively). Interestingly only a small overlap was observed between the isolates producing extremozymes and the isolates demonstrating decolorizing activity.

Review of Foods from Genetically Modified Agricultural Product

Genetically modified (GM) foods have emerged as a significant force in agriculture, offering transformative potential to address pressing global issues such as food security, malnutrition, and environmental sustainability. This comprehensive review delves into the multifaceted landscape of GM foods, examining advancements in crop improvement, environmental impact, food safety, nutraceuticals, and consumer perception. GM technologies have facilitated notable enhancements in agricultural productivity and resilience, with crops exhibiting increased yields and resistance to environmental stresses. Furthermore, biofortification initiatives have the potential to alleviate malnutrition by enhancing the nutritional content of staple crops. Additionally, the development of functional foods through genetic modification holds promise for promoting health and wellness. However, the widespread adoption of GM foods also raises ethical, health, and safety concerns, as well as challenges related to consumer acceptance. It is imperative that rigorous research, transparent communication, and responsible governance frameworks are in place to address these issues effectively. This review navigates through diverse perspectives to offer a nuanced understanding of GM foods, recognizing both their opportunities and challenges. By providing insights into the ethical dilemmas and complexities surrounding GM technologies, it aims to facilitate informed decision-making, guide policy development, and inform future research initiatives. Ultimately, the review underscores the importance of balancing innovation with ethical considerations and public concerns to ensure the sustainable and responsible deployment of GM foods in agriculture.

Assessment of the potential risks in SD rats gavaged with genetically modified yeast containing the cp4-epsps gene.

Despite the absence of definitive evidence indicating that the cp4-epsps gene and its resultant recombinant proteins have significant harmful effects on either human or animal health, the safety assessment of genetically modified (GM) crops expressing the CP4-EPSPS proteins has been controversial. This study endeavor was aimed at evaluating the potential risks posed by the CP4-EPSPS protein in transgenic crops, thereby contributing to the advancement of risk assessment methodologies in the context of genetically engineered crops. To ascertain the appropriate daily dosages for oral gavage administration, the expression levels of the CP4-EPSPS protein in a recombinant yeast were quantified. Subsequently, physiological and biochemical analysis, metabolomics, and metagenomic analysis were conducted based on a 90-day Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats feeding experiment, respectively, thereby enhancing the depth and precision of our risk assessment framework. The results from the physiological and biochemical analysis, organ pathological, blood metabolism, gut microbiota, and correlation analysis of metabolites and gut microbiota revealed several biomarkers for further risk assessment. These biomarkers include clinical biochemical indexes such as total bilirubin (TBIL), direct bilirubin (DBIL), creatine kinase (CK), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH); metabolites like Methionine, 2-Oxovaleric acid, and LysoPC (16:0); and gut microbiota including Blautia wexlerae, Holdemanella biformis, Dorea sp. CAG 317, Coriobacteriaceae and Erysipelotrichaceae. In conclusion, the risk can be significantly reduced by directly consuming inactivated recombinant CP4-EPSPS. Therefore, in everyday life, the risk associated with consuming GM foods containing recombinant CP4-EPSPS is substantially reduced after heat treatment.

Modeling of the conditions of the process of biotransformation of fish raw materials by bacterial starter cultures

Abstract In food biotechnology, special attention is given to the biotransformation by promising strains of bacterial starter cultures to obtain food products with improved quality characteristics and functional properties. Biotransformation using bacterial starter cultures may be a means to increase the shelf life of fish products, enhance their organoleptic properties, and increase their nutritional value through the formation of metabolites of their activity, which are the main factors of bioconservation and synthesis of vitamins and other biologically active substances. The probiotic properties of bacterial starter cultures will significantly influence the optimization of the indigenous microflora of the gastrointestinal tract, thereby strengthening the human body and its immune system overall to maintain a healthy lifestyle. The development of this trend is associated with the interest of the Russian population in products with a probiotic focus. In this regard, an analysis of data on the justification of the use of bacterial starter cultures for the biotransformation of fish raw materials has been conducted, and the necessary bacterial starter cultures have been selected. Based on theoretical and practical foundations, mathematical models of the biotransformation process by bacterial starter cultures have been constructed depending on the properties of fish raw materials and the biotechnological characteristics of the introduced microorganisms. The conducted research has been used to develop subsequent technological regimes for the biotransformation of fish raw materials by bacterial starter cultures as the basis for the formulations of “fast food” products containing functional components, which is justified by the accelerated pace of life and the desire of modern society to monitor their diet by consuming products that support a healthy lifestyle.

Comparative assessment of three commercial kits and in house optimized PCR assays for GMO screening in food and feed

Screening strategies for GMO detection in food and feed are a crucial aspect in GMO testing laboratories for streamlining the analytical workflow and reducing turnaround time and costs. These strategies can be more or less complex or even be targeted according to the ingredients in the product, but whatever the choice, a good basic approach is generally based on the search for 35S promoter (P35S), nos-terminator (T-nos) and FMV promoter (P-FMV). In this study, we compare the singleplex real time PCR method for P35S, T-nos and P-FMV detection currently adopted by the Italian National Reference Laboratory for GM food and feed (NRL) with three commercial kits available on the market for giving a greater choice to consider the best approach suitable to the official control laboratories that are different from each other.•The NRL optimized singleplex PCR methods and the three commercial kits fully respect all the validation parameters criteria according to the minimum performance requirements (MPR) of ENGL [1]•Screening strategies for GMO detection in food and feed are a crucial aspect in GMO testing laboratories and being the commercial kits different from each other, the laboratory can choose the methods best suit their needs reducing turnaround time and costs.

A Study on Genetically Engineered Foods: Need, Benefits, Risk, and Current Knowledge.

Food requirements have always been a top priority, and with the exponential growth of the human population, there is an increasing need for large quantities of food. Traditional cultivation methods are not able to meet the current demand for food products. One significant challenge is the shortened shelf-life of naturally occurring food items, which directly contributes to food scarcity. Contaminating substances such as weeds and pests play a crucial role in this issue. In response, researchers have introduced genetically engineered (GE) food as a potential solution. These food products are typically created by adding or replacing genes in the DNA of naturally occurring foods. GE foods offer various advantages, including increased quality and quantity of food production, adaptability to various climatic conditions, modification of vitamin and mineral levels, and prolonged shelf life. They address the major concerns of global food scarcity and food security. However, the techniques used in the production of GE foods may not be universally acceptable due to the genetic alteration of animal genes into plants or vice versa. Additionally, their unique nature necessitates further long-term studies. This study delves into the procedures and growth stages of DNA sequencing, covering the benefits, risks, industrial relevance, current knowledge, and future challenges of GE foods. GE foods have the potential to extend the shelf life of food items, alleviate food shortages, and fulfill the current nutritional food demand.

Modulation of human gut microbiota by linear and branched fructooligosaccharides in an in vitro colon model (TIM-2).

This study aimed to compare the effects of linear and branched fructooligosaccharides (FOS) extracted from chicory and grass (Lolium perenne), respectively on human microbiota composition, diversity, and metabolism. To test the effects of linear and branched FOS on human microbiota we used the artificial in vitro human colon model (TIM-2). Microbiota composition and diversity were assessed by V3-V4 16S rRNA metagenomic sequencing, followed by differential taxa abundance and alpha/beta diversity analyses. SCFA/BCFA production was evaluated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. As a result, branched FOS had the most beneficial effects on microbial diversity and metabolite production. Also, branched FOS significantly increased the abundance of commensal bacteria associated with maintaining healthy gut functions and controlling inflammation, such as Butyricicoccus, Erysipelotrichaceae, Phascolarctobacterium, and Sutterella. Linear FOS also significantly increased the abundance of some other commensal gut bacteria (Anaerobutyricum, Lachnospiraceae, Faecalibacterium), but there were no differences in diversity metrics compared to the control. The study revealed that branched FOS had the most beneficial effects compared to the linear FOS in vitro, concerning microbiota modulation, and metabolite production, making this a good candidate for further studies in food biotechnology.