Effects of ε-Polylysine/Chitosan Composite Coating and Pressurized Argon in Combination with MAP on Quality and Microorganisms of Fresh-Cut Potatoes Abstract Effects of ε-polylysine/chitosan (ε-PL/CS) composite coating and pressurized argon (Ar) in combination with modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) on the quality and the microbial load of fresh-cut potatoes during refrigeration were studied. Sliced potatoes were treated with pressurized Ar at 4 MPa for 1 h, and then immersed in ε-PL (1 g L−1)/CS solution for 1 min. Treated samples were sealed in MAP (94% N2, 4% O2, 2% CO2), and stored at 4 °C. Water loss, ascorbic acid content, respiration rate, malondialdehyde content, color, firmness, enzyme activities, and microbial load were measured at 3-day intervals. Results indicated that synergistic treatment (ε-PL/CS + pressurized Ar) significantly delayed the losses of water, ascorbic acid, color, and firmness, and inhibited the increase of respiratory rate, MDA content, and enzyme activity (PPO and POD). The microbial loads including coliform, mold, and yeast counts were significantly reduced. Preservation effect of pressurized Ar was noted to be superior to that of ε-PL/CS composite coating. Therefore, ε-PL/CS composite coating and pressurized Ar in combination with MAP is an effective method for maintaining the quality and improving the safety of fresh-cut potatoes during refrigeration.

Effect of High Hydrostatic Pressure (HHP) Processing on Immunoreactivity and Spatial Structure of Peanut Major Allergen Ara h 1 Abstract Ara h 1 is recognized as a major peanut allergen. The effects of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) on the immunoreactivity and structure of Ara h 1 were investigated in this study. The immunoreactivity of Ara h 1 was considerably reduced (P < 0.01) after HHP treatment (≥ 400 MPa) with the increase of pressure holding time. The maximum reduction of 74.32% was achieved at 600 MPa for 1200 s. The particle size and molecular weight of Ara h 1 increased, and the secondary/tertiary structure changed markedly. The decrease of the immunoreactivity of Ara h 1 was mainly due to the changes in conformation (especially the tertiary structure) and the formation of new multimers, resulting in the inactivation of immunoreactive sites. Results indicate that HHP technology has the potential to be applied to the preparation of hypoallergenic peanut products.

Aldehydes as Wort Off-Flavours in Alcohol-Free Beers—Origin and Control Abstract Although present in concentrations in microgrammes per litre level, aldehydes, in particular those derived from Strecker degradation, are known to majorly contribute to the undesired wort flavour of alcohol-free beers. In order to improve currently available products, one needs to understand the underlying cause for the over-prevalence and identify leverage points and methods to selectively reduce the aldehydes in alcohol-free beers. This work gives a short overview on relevant flavour-active wort flavours identified in alcohol-free beer and on their involved chemical formation pathways. Consequently, aldehyde removal technologies in general and in brewing industry are presented. Adsorptive removal of off-flavours by aldehyde-scavenging groups is already widely exploited in the packaging industry and may achieve reduction of these components to near depletion, depending on the process conditions. Its principles are adaptable to recovering off-flavours before filling. Also, supercritical CO2 extraction has been successfully applied to separate flavours from food matrices. In brewing, the focus has been set to biologic conversion by restricted fermentation steps, but the reduction of key components of more than 70% is not achieved. Newer developments focus on thermal separation techniques that not only include non-specific physical dealcoholisation but also more selective technologies such as pervaporation, where aldehydes are reduced to near depletion. However, for most unit operations, selectivity and capacity are not yet investigated. Future research should explore the shortcomings of current techniques and overcome bottlenecks either by developing more specific methods for aldehyde removal and/or a clever combination of unit operations to optimise the separation and process integration.

Effect of Salicylic Acid Incorporated Chitosan Coating on Shelf Life Extension of Fresh In-Hull Pistachio Fruit Abstract The effect of edible coating on the postharvest quality of fresh pistachio covered by a yellow-red colored soft shell (hull) was evaluated. Fresh pistachio fruit were immersed in different surface treatment solutions of 2% (w/v) chitosan (CT) in 0.5% acetic acid solution, 2 mmol L−1 salicylic acid (SA), and the combination of CT and SA (CT-SA), then packed in perforated polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and stored in a refrigerator for 28 days at 4 °C. Distilled water and 0.5% acetic acid solution containing 0.1% Tween were considered as control treatments. The weight loss and also the peroxide and free fatty acid values of treated fresh pistachio fruit were lower than the controls at the end of the storage period. The activity of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase enzymes in the treated pistachio fruit was significantly higher compared to controls (p < 0.05). The SA-treated pistachio fruit shows the lowest activity of polyphenol oxidase. Also, the pistachio fruit treated with CT and SA were lighter (L*), redder (a*), and more yellow (b*) in color as compared with controls, so that the highest sensory scores of color, texture, and overall acceptance were attributed to these treatments. Interestingly, SA treatment resulted in a remarkable superiority of the fruit color score among the samples. Furthermore, the CT and SA treatments alone or in combination significantly reduced the growth of bacteria and fungi. Overall, it can be concluded that SA and CT-SA treatments can assure the safety and quality of fresh pistachio fruit in refrigerated storage.

Effect of Sustainable Chemical Modifications on Pasting and Gel Properties of Sorghum and Cassava Starch Abstract Starch isolated from two different sorghum hybrids and a commercial cassava starch were modified in order to assess the improvement in rheological and thermal properties that could be produced by sustainable methods. Modifications were acetylation with acetic anhydride, hydrolysis with acetic acid, and esterification with octanoyl chloride. All sorghum starch paste exhibited higher syneresis than cassava ones and acetylation slightly improved water retention. In general, pasting profiles were significantly altered throughout modifications and the paste textural properties and rheological results suggested a physical gel behavior. Cassava and white sorghum unmodified gels showed higher values of textural parameters than those of brown sorghum. The flow data were adequately fitted by the power-law model (R2 > 0.96) with flow behavior index < 1. The acetylation, acid treatment, and octanoyl esterification of cassava and sorghum starch resulted in significant changes in water interaction, indicating a wider range of properties.

Correction to: Fabrication of Gel-like Emulsions with Whey Protein Isolate Using Microfluidization: Rheological Properties and 3D Printing Performance The original version of this article unfortunately contained some mistakes. The Fig. 7 was published with incomplete content due to incorrect image processing.

Microencapsulation of Garlic Extract by Complex Coacervation Using Whey Protein Isolate/Chitosan and Gum Arabic/Chitosan as Wall Materials: Influence of Anionic Biopolymers on the Physicochemical and Structural Properties of Microparticles Abstract The aim of this study was to encapsulate garlic extract by complex coacervation method using whey protein isolate (WPI)/chitosan (CH) and gum Arabic (GA)/CH as wall materials. Two anionic biopolymers (GA and WPI) were used to find the most suitable wall materials to interact electrostatically with cationic CH. The complex coacervates were freeze-dried to obtain microparticles powders. The microparticles were examined for the nitrogen adsorption/desorption, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), sorption isotherms, zeta potential, antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, solubility, moisture content, hygroscopicity, size distribution, and water activity. X-ray diffractograms evidenced microparticles with amorphous structure. WPI/CH and GA/CH microparticles showed surface area of 2.23 and 2.40 m2 g−1 and mean pore diameter of 5.20 and 5.37 nm, respectively. The nitrogen adsorption/desorption assay showed that microparticles presented mesopores and macropores that resulted in quick completion of microparticles surface monolayer with nitrogen. The sorption characteristics of microparticles followed the type II isotherm and Guggenheim-Anderson-de Boer (GAB) model was the best model to fit the experimental data. FTIR spectrum of microparticles reveals physical interactions between garlic compounds and functional groups of wall materials, indicating that garlic compounds were intact and encapsulated. TGA results indicated that the wall materials were effective in protecting the garlic sensitive compounds. The negative carboxyl groups (–COO−) of GA were better than WPI for coacervation with positive amino groups (NH3+) of chitosan in terms of less hygroscopicity, smaller particle size, and higher retention of garlic phenolic compounds.

Zein/Pectin Nanoparticle-Stabilized Sesame Oil Pickering Emulsions: Sustainable Bioactive Carriers and Healthy Alternatives to Sesame Paste Abstract In this study, a kind of Pickering emulsion with a desirable interface architecture and sesame paste flavor was prepared using zein, apple pectin (AP), and sesame oil. Zein-AP composite nanoparticles (ZAPs) were first assembled via an anti-solvent procedure and electrostatic adsorption for stabilizing sesame-oil-in-water Pickering emulsions (ZASPEs). ZASPEs (volume fraction of oil φ = 0.7) exhibited excellent plasticity and viscoelasticity (indicated by low-field NMR spectroscopy and rheology). Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), demonstrated the anchoring of ZAPs at the oil–water interface, while cryo-SEM confirmed the three-dimensional microstructural network formed inside the emulsion. Compared to a commercial sesame paste, diluted ZASPEs (φ = 0.35) exhibited similar rheological and sensory properties, while ZASPEs (φ = 0.7) and diluted ZASPEs possessed greater smoothness and spreadability. Accordingly, the current ZASPEs as new additions to the existing Pickering emulsions not only function as bioactive carriers but also impart desirable flavor in food applications.

Behavioral Solubilization of Peanut Protein Isolate by Atmospheric Pressure Cold Plasma (ACP) Treatment Abstract The solubilization of peanut protein isolate (PPI) powders modified by atmospheric pressure cold plasma (ACP) treatment was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (low-field NMR) spectroscopy, and FTIR spectroscopy. Significant improvements in both the solubility and water holding capacity (WHC) of the PPI gel were observed after treatment with ACP. The PPI solubility reached a maximum value after 7 min of treatment, with a 12.17% increase over the values observed for the untreated samples. In addition, the WHC increased by 17.90% after 3 min of treatment. The SEM and EDS data revealed that following the 7-min treatment, the PPI surface was rougher and more loosely bound than that of the untreated sample. This indicated an increase in the PPI specific surface area and exposed protein–water binding sites on the treated PPI surface as well as a marked increase in its oxygen content, suggesting an increase in the hydrophilic groups on the PPI surface. The low-filed NMR measurements revealed that the trend in the T21 peak area of the relaxation time was consistent with the data observed for the WHC. The FTIR results revealed a decrease in the proportion of β-sheets and an increase in that of the β-turns within 3 min of treatment, suggesting that the polarity and hydrophilicity of the protein surface were enhanced. The protein structure changed from a compact folding to a loose unfolding configuration after ACP treatment.

High-Pressure Processing (HPP) for Decreasing Weight Loss of Fresh Albacore ( Thunnus alalunga ) Steaks Abstract This research is focused on optimizing high-pressure processing (HPP) for decreasing weight loss of albacore steaks (Thunnus alalunga) while retaining as much as possible the quality of fresh fish. After HPP treatments (0.1–500 MPa, 2 min), samples were stored (24 h, 4°C) and then analyzed (weight loss, color, texture, appearance, water holding capacity, salt-soluble protein content, and lipid oxidation). Weight loss increased from 50 to 150 MPa, without other substantial modification. Above 200 MPa, HPP treatment caused a progressive weight loss reduction. 200 MPa decreased weight loss by 41.6% with respect to 150 MPa, without noticeable changes in color, texture, appearance, or lipid oxidation. 250 MPa decreased weight loss by 50.1% compared to the controls but produced minor changes in color. 500 MPa provoked the maximum reduction of weight loss with respect to the controls (59%), although it caused marked differences in all quality parameters, which would affect consumer acceptance.