Food & Function Blog

Delivery of Functionality in Complex Food Systems – Abstract Submission Deadline 20th May

Anna Simpson, Deputy Editor — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:30:00 +0000

The 5th International Symposium on Delivery of Functionality in Complex Food Systems: Physically-Inspired Approaches from the Nanoscale to the Microscale will be taking place in Haifa, Israel from September 30 – October 3, 2013.

Abstract Submission

Early bird registration is open until July 16^th 2013

The emphasis of this meeting will be on the application of scientific principles towards the rational design and fabrication of healthy, attractive and sustainable foods. The meeting will focus on understanding the basic physical principles behind the co-assembly of food components and their utilization for delivering various functional components, for promoting both health and enjoyment of the consumer.

This meeting is aimed at scientists from various backgrounds, including Food Science, Food Technology, Food Physics, Physical Chemistry, Biophysics, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, Polymer Science and Nanotechnology, as well as food-professionals from food and ingredient companies.

Main Themes:

Advances in engineering self-assembly: novel molecular architectures and structures for the delivery of food supplements/additives
Efficacy of bioactive delivery systems in food: programmed release and bioavailability
Safety and regulation of nutraceutical delivery systems

Visit the website for more information and to submit an abstract

Food & Function is delighted to be supporting this excellent conference. The aims of the Journal are closely aligned with the Delivery of Functionality conference series, and Food & Function published a special issue containing research presented at the 4^th Symposium in the series, held in Guelph, Canada in 2011. Read the special issue here.

Food & Function issue 5 now available online

Emma Eley, Development Editor — Fri, 03 May 2013 11:00:37 +0000

Issue 5 of Food & Function is now available to read online!

The front cover this month features work by Young Hee Choi, Sang-Yong Nam and co-workers from Seoul, Republic of Korea. In their work, Eastern Prickly Pear cactus stem was extracted with different solvents and screened for radical scavenging activity. The results suggest that bioactive compounds present in the cactus stem extract may help prevent cancer through the modulation of apoptosis markers and inhibition of inflammatory pathways.

This article is free to access for the next six weeks. To read it in full, click the link below:

Chemopreventive effect of cactus (Opuntia humifusa) extracts: radical scavenging activity, pro-apoptosis, and anti-inflammatory effect in human colon (SW480) and breast cancer (MCF7) cells, Jinhee Kim, Kwang Hyun Jho, Young Hee Choi and Sang-Yong Nam, Food Funct., 2013, 4, 681–688

Understanding the sensory perception of salt

Emma Eley, Development Editor — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 11:03:32 +0000

Excess salt in the diet can lead to serious health conditions such as heart attack or stroke. Image © Shutterstock.

Salt (NaCl) is an important ingredient in many foods as it increases microbial stability, enhances flavour, and can influence the structure of macromolecules. However, consuming too much salt can lead to various health conditions such as hypertension (which can lead to a stroke or heart disease), and increase in calcium excretion (leading to osteoporosis and kidney stones). Manufacturers have attempted to create low sodium foods by substituting NaCl with other molecules such as potassium chloride (KCl), NaGlu or yeast extracts. However, in order to design palatable foods with lower salt contents it is necessary to understand the phenomena occurring during the oral processing of salt.

In this paper, Serafim Bakalis and co-workers from University of Birmingham, UK, have investigated salt release from food using a gustometer-type model system. The results show that if salt can be released in pulses, via controlled destructuring during oral processing, then tasty and healthier low salt foods can be developed. This is easier to achieve in solid foods such as bread and cheese where salt can be partitioned between different regions due to the slow diffusion kinetics. However, it is still a challenge for liquid and soft solid foods, as the interfaces have to be specifically tailored to ensure that partitioning is maintained over time.

Modelling the human response to saltiness, Benjamin J. D. Le Reverend, Ian T. Norton and Serafim Bakalis, Food Funct., 2013, DOI: 10.1039/c3fo30106k

Active packaging to control unwanted lipid oxidation

Emma Eley, Development Editor — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 08:51:00 +0000

Lipids are important compounds in foods and influence many factors from nutrition to mouth-feel. However, lipid compounds readily undergo oxidation reactions, which negatively effect the texture, odour and colour of foods, which in turn lead to a reduced shelf-life. In fact, some previous research has shown that oxidized lipids from the diet could directly contribute to major illnesses in humans, such as cancers and heart disease.

In order to prevent lipid oxidation, active packaging systems containing antioxidant agents, radical scavengers, metal chelators and ultraviolet (UV) absorbers have been introduced into the food industry with the aim to increase the safety and quality of packaged foods. Active packaging goes goes beyond the traditional role of packaging by imparting specific, intentional functionality to the packaging system and is discussed in depth in this recent Food & Function review. Here, Fang Tian, Eric Decker and Julie Goddard, from Massachusetts, USA, discuss the recent advances in antioxidant active packaging and highlight the development and application of active packaging systems. The opportunity to apply these antioxidant active packaging systems commercially is also discussed, with a focus on maintaining safety, quality and nutrition of packaged foods.

To find out more, click the link below to read the full article. It’s free until the 15th May:

Controlling lipid oxidation of food by active packaging technologies, Fang Tian, Eric A. Decker and Julie M. Goddard, Food Funct., 2013, DOI: 10.1039/c3fo30360h

Glucose energy drinks could help enhance memory and attention

Emma Eley, Development Editor — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 13:57:53 +0000

Energy drinks could help enhance memory and attention. Image © Shutterstock’

Glucose is very important for healthy brain function as it modulates mental alertness and cognition. However, glucose cannot be easily stored and the brain requires a constant supply of glucose for fuel. Previous work has shown that consuming a glucose drink can enhance mental alertness, however the precise cognitive abilities that are susceptible to glucose remain unclear.

To investigate this further, Louise Brown and Leigh Riby from Nottingham Trent University and Northumbria University, UK, have examined the effects of glucose on episodic memory and attention processes. 35 participants performed an old/new recognition memory task and a Stroop colour naming task. The results showed that glucose enhances the neuro-cognitive processes related to verbal episodic memory and recollection, which was consistent with earlier work. However, there was also some evidence of enhanced attention during the task under difficult conditions. Therefore, the results suggest that glucose drinks may facilitate attention as well as memory.

To find out more, read the article in full by clicking the link below:

Glucose enhancement of event-related potentials associated with episodic memory and attention, Louise A. Brown and Leigh M. Riby, Food Funct., 2013, DOI: 10.1039/C3FO30243A

Food & Function issue 4 now online

Anna Simpson, Deputy Editor — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 14:59:51 +0000

Food & Function issue 4 is now online and you can read it here.

The front cover highlights a study which demonstrates that the addition to bread of guar gum and whole grain corn flour with an elevated amylose content improves the course of glycaemia.

The Paper, from Linda Ekström and colleagues from Lund University in Sweeden, aims to investigate the possibility of modulating glycaemia, insulinaemia and perceived satiety of white bread as frequent hyperglycaemia is associated with oxidative stress and subclinical inflammation, thereby increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease.

This article is free to read for 6 weeks!

On the possibility to affect the course of glycaemia, insulinaemia, and perceived hunger/satiety to bread meals in healthy volunteers, Linda M. N. K. Ekström, Inger M. E. Björck and Elin M. Östman, Food Funct., 2013, 4, 522-529

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Black tea: chemical analysis and stability

Mary Badcock, Deputy Editor — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 09:12:59 +0000

Tea is one of the most popular drinks worldwide, and it’s nutritional value is comes mainly from the tea polyphenols which are reported to possess a broad spectrum of biological activities. These include reduction of various cancers, inhibition of inflammation, and protective effects against diabetes and obesity.

In this review article researchers from Rutgers University (USA), National Chiayi University and National Kaohsiung Marine university (Taiwan) review the chemical analysis and stability of black tea. Accurate analysis of the components of black tea is important for quality control, but also to identify the important biologically active molecules within it and their efficacy in animal and human studies. Based on these finding, new and improved tea products can be produced. This review article summarizes the major components of black tea before looking at the methods of analyzing these compounds and their stability.

Read the full article for free:

Black tea: chemical analysis and stability, Shiming Li, Chih-Yu Lo, Min-Hsiung Pan, Ching-Shu Lai and Chi-Tang Ho, Food Funct., 2013, 4, 10-18

Webinar: The power of modern HPTLC

Mary Badcock, Deputy Editor — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 16:09:50 +0000

Join Chemistry World and Advion for a webcast on the latest developments in HPTLC technology.

WHAT: Professor Morlock from the University of Giessen, Germany, will give an overview of current HPTLC methodology, explore some examples of HPTLC-MS coupling and review other current hyphenations in HPTLC. By the end of this free webinar, you will be able to:
- Recognise the power of modern HPTLC
- Learn about current hyphenations in HPTLC
- Understand the principle of elution-based HPTLC-MS
- Recognise how HPTLC hyphenations efficiently support analyses

WHEN: Wednesday, 20 March 2013 – 15:00 GMT

HOW: Click here to register (free)