Encapsulation of ascorbic acid promotes the reduction of Maillard reaction products in UHT milk

The presence of amino groups and carbonyls renders fortified milk with ascorbic acid particularly susceptible to the reduction of available lysine and to the formation of Maillard reaction products (MRPs), as Nε-(Carboxyethyl)-L-lysine (CEL), Nε-(Carboxymethyl)-L-lysine (CML), Amadori products (APs) and off-flavors. A novel approach was proposed to control the Maillard reaction (MR) in fortified milk: ascorbic acid was encapsulated in a lipid coating and the effects were tested after a lab scale UHT treatment. Encapsulation promoted a delayed release of ascorbic acid and a reduction in the formation of MRPs. Total lysine increased up to 45% in milk with encapsulated ascorbic acid, while reductions in CML, CEL and furosine ranged from 10% to 53% compared with control samples. The effects were also investigated towards the formation of amide-AGEs (advanced glycation end products) by high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) revealing that several mechanisms coincide with the MR in the presence of ascorbic acid (AA)

Impact of deep-fat-frying on some plantain micronutrients

Plantains and bananas are one of the major staple foods of sub-Saharan Africa and Latin-America. These fruit are source of dietary minerals and vitamins. Deep-fat frying unit operation is widely used for the transformation of plantain in Latin-America and in Africa. The aim of this research was to evaluate the influence of deep-fat frying on the micronutrients of plantain (Musa AAB "barraganete"). Influence of the raw material (two batches) was analyzed. Cylinders (diameter 30 mm, thickness 10 mm) of plantain were fried at four thermal treatments (120-180° C and from 24 to 4 min). Molecules of nutritional interest with water soluble properties (potassium, L-ascorbic acid) or lipid soluble properties (alpha-carotene, beta-carotene) were quantified during the course of frying. One plantain batch was initially rich in L-ascorbic acid (24.4 ± 0.9 mg/100mg) and poor in total carotenoid (0.6 ± 0.3 mg/100mg), while the other was poor in L-ascorbic acid (7.5 ± 0.3 mg/100mg) and rich in total carotenoid (2.1 ± 0,7 mg/100mg). On line measurements of the water content and internal temperature profile allow to characterize the behaviour of bath products during deep-fat frying. The thermal study used the cook value as indicators of the effect of thermal history on quality. Potassium was determinate by ICP; L-ascorbic acid and carotenoid determinations were performed by HPLC. Deep-fat frying had no significant effect on potassium contents at any frying- conditions. Exclusively with the plantain initially rich in L-ascorbic acid, a-carotene and ,alpha-carotene, significant losses were observed. The average loss on L-ascorbic acid. alpha-carotene and beta-carotene were close to 75%, 44% and 35%, respectively. Cook values were very different at any frying conditions, while the lasses of micronutrient were not significantly different at the four frying treatments. Cook value parameters does not seem relevant. These couldn't be explained just with a first order kinetic thermal degradation behaviour. Perhaps, the heterogeneous distribution of micronutrient across the plantain (in radial direction) and/or cellular scale could explain of such behaviours. However it's difficult to develop more extensive assumptions without histological information of the micronutrient localization in plantain. (Texte intégral

Ascorbic Acid Content on Hibiscus Sabdariffa L. Callus at Various Consentration of Sucrose in Ms Media

Ascorbic acid is an antioxidant which is found in rosella flower. Its production through conventional method needs long time and wide field, so an alternative method through development of callus invitro is conducted. Sucrose is a main carbon source in MS medium and this sugar plays role as precursor for the formation of ascorbic acid. This study was conducted to determine the effect of sucrose concentration on callus formation and production of ascorbic acid. Sucrose was added to the media at the concentration of 20 g/L, 30 g/L, 40 g/L and 50 g/L. The culture was incubated for 42 days with twice subculture every 10 days. Analysis of ascorbic acid was perfomed using iodometry. The results showed that the callus was grow better in sucrose of 20 g/L while the ascorbic acid production was better in sucrose 50 g/L

Variation in the SLC23A1 gene does not influence cardiometabolic outcomes to the extent expected given its association with L-ascorbic acid

Background: Observational studies showed that circulating L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is inversely associated with cardiometabolic traits. However, these studies were susceptible to confounding and reverse causation. Objectives: We assessed the relation between L-ascorbic acid and 10 cardiometabolic traits by using a single nucleotide polymorphism in the solute carrier family 23 member 1 (SLC23A1) gene (rs33972313) associated with circulating L-ascorbic acid concentrations. The observed association between rs33972313 and cardiometabolic outcomes was compared with that expected given the rs33972313-L-ascorbic acid and L-ascorbic acid-outcome associations. Design: A meta-analysis was performed in the following 5 independent studies: the British Women's Heart and Health Study (n = 1833), the MIDSPAN study (n = 1138), the Ten Towns study (n = 1324), the British Regional Heart Study (n = 2521), and the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer (n = 3737). Results: With the use of a meta-analysis of observational estimates, inverse associations were shown between L-ascorbic acid and systolic blood pressure, triglycerides, and the waist-hip ratio [the strongest of which was the waist-hip ratio (-0.13-SD change; 95% CI: -0.20-, -0.07-SD change; P = 0.0001) per SD increase in L-ascorbic acid], and a positive association was shown with high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. The variation at rs33972313 was associated with a 0.18-SD (95% CI: 0.10-, 0.25-SD; P = 3.34 × 10⁻⁶) increase in L-ascorbic acid per effect allele. There was no evidence of a relation between the variation at rs33972313 and any cardiometabolic outcome. Although observed estimates were not statistically different from expected associations between rs33972313 and cardiometabolic outcomes, estimates for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, and body mass index were in the opposite direction to those expected.The nature of the genetic association exploited in this study led to limited statistical application, but despite this, when all cardiometabolic traits were assessed, there was no evidence of any trend supporting a protective role of L-ascorbic acid. In the context of existing work, these results add to the suggestion that observational relations between L-ascorbic acid and cardiometabolic health may be attributable to confounding and reverse causation.Kaitlin H Wade, Nita G Forouhi, Derek G Cook, Paul Johnson, Alex McConnachie, Richard W Morris, Santiago Rodriguez, Zheng Ye, Shah Ebrahim, Sandosh Padmanabhan, Graham Watt, K Richard Bruckdorfer, Nick J Wareham, Peter H Whincup, Stephen Chanock, Naveed Sattar, Debbie A Lawlor, George Davey Smith and Nicholas J Timpso

Effect of different drying treatments on colour quality and ascorbic acid concentration of guava fruit

Guava (Psidium guajava L.) is a rich source of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) having high water content (above 80%) which makes it extremely perishable, but storage, handling, processing and transporting becomes difficult due to high moisture content. Therefore, guava needs dehydration process by upholding its natural colour and minimum ascorbic acid losses. We have carried out a comprehensive study to examine the influence of different drying treatments; under direct sunlight, freezing, convection oven (50, 60, 70, 80 and 90°C) and microwave oven (100, 250, 440, 600 and 1000 watts) on ascorbic acid concentration and colour quality of guava. The mean values of ascorbic acid concentration of dried guava slices were changed significantly (P < 0.05) as compared to fresh guava slices. The colour of guava slices became yellowish with an increase in temperature and power of conventional and microwave ovens, respectively. We found freeze drying as the best method for the dehydration of guava in terms of ascorbic acid and natural colour preservation

Blood parameters of Caspian brown trout (Salmo trutta caspius) fingerlings affected by dietary L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate

This study was aimed to evaluate the effect of L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate as a dietary ascorbic acid source on blood parameters of Caspian brown trout (Salmo trutta caspius), including red blood cell (RBC) count, white blood cell (WBC) and WBC differential. A total number of 600 Caspian brown trout (9.6±0.6 g) fingerlings were randomly distributed in triplicates among five treatments each containing 40 specimens. Experimental diets were also prepared by adding 0, 50, 100, 200 and 400 mg kg^-1 L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate to the basal diet. Feeding was done for nine weeks in each treatment. The survival rate in all treatments was 100%. The results showed a significant increase in RBC, hemoglobin, hematocrit, WBC and lymphocyte (p<0.05) by supplementing L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate compared to the control treatment. The fish fed by 200 mg ascorbic acid kg^-1 diet had the maximum hemoglobin and hematocrit in comparison with the other treatments. The current research showed that dietary L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate influences the complete blood count of Caspian brown trout while fingerlings fed with the optimum amounts of 200 mg ascorbic acid kg^-1 diet for a period of 9 weeks trail

Bioactive substance contents and antioxidant capacity of raw and blanched vegetables.

Five commonly consumed vegetables in Malaysia namely, four-angled bean (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus D.C.), French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), long bean (Vigna sesquipedalis L.), snow pea (Pisum sativum var. macrocarpon L.) and snap pea (Pisum sativum) were blanched in boiling water for 10 min. The contents of total phenolics, ascorbic acid and β-carotene, and the antioxidant capacity as typified by β-carotene and free radical scavenging activity (DPPH) assays were determined for the raw and blanched vegetables. The study revealed that blanching caused a significant (p < 0.05) increase in β-carotene content [fresh (389–539 µg/100 g), blanched (510–818 µg/100 g)], except in snow pea. Conversely, there was a significant (p < 0.05) decrease in ascorbic acid content [fresh (1.2–7.8 mg/100 g), blanched (0.67–3.8 mg/100 g)]. After blanching, the total phenolic content and antioxidant activity either decreased or increased depending on the type of vegetables. The total phenolic content was positively correlated with the antioxidant activity of the studied vegetables to some extent, but not with ascorbic acid or β-carotene

Thermal expansion of L-ascorbic acid

The specific volume of vitamin C has been investigated by X-ray powder diffraction as a function of temperature from 110¿K up to complete degradation around 440¿K. Its thermal expansion is relatively small in comparison with other organic compounds with an expansivity av of 1.2(3) × 10-4¿K-1. The structure consists of strongly bound molecules in the ac plane through a dense network of hydrogen bonds. The thermal expansion is anisotropic. Along the b axis, the expansion has most leeway and is about 10 times larger than in the other directions.Postprint (author's final draft

FTIR-DRIFTS-based prediction of β-carotene, α-tocopherol and L-ascorbic acid in mango (Mangifera indica L.) fruit pulp

Mango fruits contain substantial vitamins and dietary fibre. Vitamins vary among and within fruits depending on cultivar type and ripening stage. Conventional techniques of vitamins analysis are based on High Pressure Liquid Chromatography, which are costly and laborious. This study evaluated the potential of Fourier transform infrared-diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (FTIR-DRIFTS) technique in predicting β-carotene, α-tocopherol and L-ascorbic acid in pulps of four mango cultivar types (‘Apple’, ‘Kent’, ‘Ngowe’, and ‘Tommy Atkins’). Combination of ran dom forest (RF) and first derivative spectra developed the predictive models. Factorial ANOVA examined the interaction effect of cultivar type, site (‘Thika’, ‘Embu’ and ‘Machakos), and fruit canopy position (sun exposed/within crown) on β-carotene, α-tocopherol and L-ascorbic acid contents. RF Models gave R2 = 0.97, RMSE = 2.27, RPD = 0.72 for β-carotene; R2 = 0.98, RMSE = 0.26, RPD = 0.30 for α-tocopherol and R2 = 0.96, RMSE = 0.51, RPD = 1.96 for L-ascorbic acid. Generally cultivar type affected vitamin C, F (3, 282) = 7.812, p < 0.05. Apple and Tommy Atkins had higher mean vitamins than Ngowe and Kent. In Machakos, within canopy fruits had higher β-carotene than sun-exposed fruits, F (5, 257) = 2.328, p = 0.043. However, interactions between fruit position, site and cultivar did not affect α-tocopherol and vitamin C. In Thika, Tommy Atkins at fully ripe stage had higher vitamin C than at intermediate maturity stage, F (2, 143) = 7.328, p = 0.01. These results show that FTIR-DRIFTS spectroscopy is a high-throughput method that can be used to predict mango fruit vitamins of in a large data set

Study of Phytochemical, Antioxidant, Antimicrobial and Anticancer Activity of Berberis Aristata.

The present study was undertaken to find the phytochemical presence, antioxidant potential, antimicrobial activity, and anticancer activity of methanol extract of Berberis Aristata. Plant extract showed the presence of antioxidants like alkaloid, saponin, terpenoids, coumarin, flavonoids, tannin, glycoside and steroid. Further, antioxidant assay like DPPH (Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) assay, hydrogen peroxide assay and reducing power assay was done. DPPH free radical Scavenging Activity was expressed in % inhibition with L Ascorbic acid as standard showing IC50 9.6μg/ml and that of extract was 33.31μg/ml. Hydrogen peroxide radical scavenging activity was comparable to standard, IC50 for L Ascorbic acid is 54.23g/ml and that of B Aristata is 60.6g/ml. Similarly, reducing power of plant extract at different concentration was comparable with L-Ascorbic Acid. Antimicrobial screening showed good positive result with Candida Albicans, Salmonella typhii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. Cell viability assay; MTT; showed a significant cytotoxicity to MDA-MB-231 and U-87 MG human cancer cell line compared to NIH/3T3 standard embryonic fibroblast cell lines of mouse