Determination of acrylamide levels in selected commercial and traditional foods in Syria

Purpose: To determine acrylamide (AA) levels in different brands of commercial and traditional foodstuffs available in Syria by ultra-performance liquid  chromatography-mass spectrometery (UPLCMS).Methods: A total of 63 samples were analyzed. Food samples were defatted by hexane and then extracted with methanol 98 % in a vortex mixer. Thereafter, Carrez I and Carrez II were added to precipitate proteins from the co-extractives and then centrifuged to obtain a clear aqueous extract that was evaporated to dryness. The extract was dissolved in 1 mL of water, eluted through a preconditioned Oasis HLB cartridge and then filtered. The filtrate was analyzed by UPLC-MS/MS to determine AA content.Results: Among the commercial foods tested, the highest acrylamide quantity was found in potato products (396 ± 3.59 – 1844 ± 5.29 μg kg−1) and the lowest in corn products (183 ± 2.64 – 366 ± 4.58 μg kg−1). This was followed by biscuits (57 ± 2.64 – 1433 ± 2.51 μg kg−1), breakfast cereals (121 ± 8.73 – 245 ± 3.60 μg kg−1), bread (119 ± 1.73 – 263 ± 3.60 μg kg−1) and then coffee (113 ± 2.64 - 64 ± 3.05 μg kg−1). Regarding traditional foods, the highest level of AA was found in AL- Mshabak (481 ± 2.08 μg kg−1) and AL-Awamat (421 ± 2.64 μg kg−1) followed by AL-Namora (282 ± 4.35 μg kg−1) and AL-Kenafa (242 ± 2.64 μg kg−1). It was also observed that the lowest amount of AA was in fried bread (230 μg kg−1), AL-Fatayer (192 ± 3.51 μg kg−1) and AL-Baqlawa (172 ± 4.35 μg kg−1) while Eid Aqras (130 ± 4.58 μg kg−1) and AL-Brazeq (167 ± 3.78 μg kg−1) contained the least amount of AA.Conclusion: The results indicate that the highest levels of AA are found in the most commonly consumed foods. There was significant difference (p < 0.05) in AA levels among different food items and within different brands of the same product.Keywords: Acrylamide, Commercial foods, Traditional foods, Syrian food,  Contaminants, UPLCMS/M

Emulsification properties of soy bean protein

Chen W, Li X, Rahman MRT, Al-Hajj NQM, Dey KC, Raqib SM. 2014. Emulsification properties of soy bean protein. Nusantara Bioscience 6: 196-202. Emulsion stability and emulsifying ability are two important factors in food industry. Soy protein has the great of interest because of its amphilic structure. β-Conglycinnin and glycinin are main components in soy protein which can be used as emulsifiers in food processing. However, due to its size and molecular weight, the emulsifying ability of soy protein is limited. By chemical, physical and enzymatic modification, the emulsifying ability of soy protein can be improved. The addition of polysaccharides in emulsion is common. The interaction of polysaccharides and proteins are being discussed in this review. In some complex food emulsion, the function of soy protein molecules and emulsifier at the interface need to be investigated in the future study

Determination of preservative residues and microbial contents of commercial Chinese duck neck meat

Los productos cárnicos de cuello de pato son aperitivos tradicionales y populares en China por su atractivo sabor picante, aroma y textura. Estos productos son muy perecederos y se utilizan diferentes tipos de conservantes químicos de forma extensiva. Este estudio determinó los niveles de conservantes y la carga microbiana en productos cárnicos de cuello de pato chino mediante cromatografía de gas y métodos de placa de agar, respectivamente. Los resultados mostraron que los productos cárnicos de cuello de pato chino contienen metil p-hidroxibenzoato (E-218) en un rango de 21,15 μg/g – 14,5 mg/g, ácido propiónico (E-280) en un rango de 26,84 – 30,24 mg/g y ácido benzoico (E-210) en un rango no detectado – 15,99 μg/g. No se detectó ácido sórbico (E-200). El recuento total por placa fue de 1,01 – 2,03 log cfu/g y los recuentos de Lactobacillus fueron de 1,04 – 1,43 log cfu/g. El cuello de pato crudo refrigerado contenía todos los microorganismos examinados, mientras que no se detectaron levadura, moho ni salmonella en ninguno de los productos cárnicos de cuello de pato procesados.Duck neck meat products are traditional, popular snack items in China for its attractive spicy taste, flavor and texture. These products are perishable and different types of chemical preservatives are used extensively. This study determined the levels of preservatives and microbial load in Chinese duck neck meat product by gas chromatography and agar plate methods, respectively. The results showed that Chinese duck neck meat product contains methyl-p-hydroxybenzoate (E-218) in the range 21.15 μg/g–14.5 mg/g, propionic acid (E-280) in the range 26.84–30.24 mg/g and benzoic acid (E-210) in the range not detected – 15.99 μg/g. Sorbic acid (E-200) was not detected. The total plate counts were 1.01–2.03 log cfu/g, and Lactobacilli counts were 1.04–1.43 log cfu/g. Refrigerated raw duck neck contained all the tested microorganisms while yeast, mold and salmonella were not detected in all of the processed duck neck meat products