Changes in the physicochemical properties of chia (Salvia hispanica L.) seeds during solid-state and submerged fermentation and their influence on wheat bread quality and sensory profile

This study aimed at investigating the impacts of 24 h of either solid-state fermentation (SSF) or submerged fermentation (SMF) with Lactiplantibacillus plantarum strain No. 122 on the physicochemical attributes of chia seeds (CS). Furthermore, this study examined how adding fermented chia seeds (10, 20, and 30% concentrations) affected the properties and sensory profile of wheat bread. Acidity, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) viable counts, biogenic amine (BA), and fatty acid (FA) profiles of fermented chia seeds were analysed. The main quality parameters, acrylamide concentration, FA and volatile compound (VC) profiles, sensory characteristics, and overall acceptability of the obtained breads, were analysed. A decline in the concentration of certain BA and saturated FA and an increase in polyunsaturated FA and omega-3 (omega-3) were found in fermented CS (FCS). The same tendency in the FA profile was observed in both breads, i.e., breads with non-fermented CS (NFCS) or FCS. The quality parameters, VC profile, and sensory attributes of wheat bread were significantly affected by the addition of NFCS or FCS to the main bread formula. All supplemented breads had reduced specific volume and porosity, but SSF chia seeds increased moisture and decreased mass loss after baking. The lowest acrylamide content was found in bread with a 30% concentration of SSF chia seeds (11.5 mu g/kg). The overall acceptance of supplemented breads was lower than the control bread, but breads with 10 and 20% SMF chia seed concentrations were still well accepted (on average, 7.4 score). Obtained results highlight that fermentation with Lp. plantarum positively contributes to chia seed nutritional value, while incorporation of NFCS and FCS at certain levels results in an improved FA profile, certain sensory attributes, and reduced acrylamide content in wheat bread.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Psyllium husk gel used as an alternative and more sustainable scalding technology for wheat bread quality improvement and acrylamide reduction

This study aimed at evaluating the influence of different amounts (5, 10, 15, 20, and 25%) of psyllium husk gel (PHG) on wheat bread (WB) characteristics – chiefly, overall acceptability (OA), porosity, specific volume (v), mass loss after baking (ML), shape retention coefficient, crust and crumb color coordinates, bread crumb hardness during storage, saccharides content, and acrylamide (AA) concentration. PHG was prepared by mixing 100 g of psyllium husk powder with 800 mL of warm water. It was established that the amount of psyllium husk gel is a significant factor in dough redness (a*) (p < 0.001). A moderate positive correlation (r) was found between acrylamide content in wheat bread and maltose concentration in dough (r = 0.567). The psyllium husk gel increased the overall acceptability and specific volume of wheat bread. Wheat bread porosity showed a moderate positive correlation with mass loss after baking (r = 0.567) and a strong positive correlation with texture hardness (r = 0.664). Lower acrylamide content was obtained in wheat bread prepared with 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25% of psyllium husk gel (1.53, 2.34, 3.80, 2.69, and 3.62 times lower than the control wheat bread, respectively). Acrylamide content showed a strong positive correlation with the porosity of wheat bread (r = 0.672), with crust brightness (L*), and yellowness/blueness (b*) coordinates, as well as with crumb brightness, redness, and yellowness coordinates. Overall, psyllium husk gel hydrocolloids reduced acrylamide formation in wheat bread and can be recommended for the quality improvement of wheat bread.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Characterisation of Lacto-Fermented Cricket (Acheta domesticus) Flour and Its Influence on the Quality Parameters and Acrylamide Formation in Wheat Biscuits

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of different amounts (40, 80 and 100 g) of non-fermented and fermented (with Lactiplantibacillus plantarum No. 122 and Lacticaseibacillus casei No. 210) cricket flour (Cr) on the quality characteristics and acrylamide formation in wheat biscuits (WB). The main formula for WB preparation consisted of 280 g of wheat flour, 100 g of margarine, 50 g of saccharose, 3 g of vanilla sugar, 50 g of eggs, 1.5 g of salt and 2.0 g of baking powder. It was established that the highest lactic acid bacteria (LAB) number was achieved in 48 h with No. 122 fermented Cr (11.8 log10 CFU/g) and the lowest pH (4.34) was obtained after 48 h of Cr fermentation with both the tested LAB strains. The total colour differences were in the range of 17.54 to 22.08 and, in every case, fermented samples were clearly distinguished from untreated ones. Fermentation increased tyramine content in Cr (from 13.0 to 29.2 times). The main FAs in Cr were palmitic acid, stearic acid, octadec-9-enoic acid and linoleic acid. The lowest acrylamide content (84.1 µg/kg) was found in WB with 40 g of Cr fermented with No. 210. Significant differences in WB overall acceptability were not found. However, the highest intensity of emotion “happy” was elicited by WB with 80 g of Cr fermented with No. 122. Due to the demonstrated decrease of acrylamide content, fermented Cr can be considered a beneficial ingredient for the manufacture of WB.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Influence of lacto-fermented traditional and colored wheat grain wholemeal flour on wheat biscuit quality

In this study, the non-treated and lacto-fermented (with Lacticaseibacillus paracasei LUHS244) wholemeal of new breed lines of colored wheat (blue 8558-1 and black 8472-5) and traditional wheat "Silva", was evaluated for the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) viable count, acidity, color parameters, amino acid (AA) profile, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and biogenic amine content. The addition of 50, 100, 150, 200, and 250 g of tested wheat wholemeal was used for biscuit preparation. The chromaticity characteristics of the dough and biscuits, dough pH, acrylamide concentration, overall acceptability, and volatile compounds (VC) were examined. In most cases, fermentation increased the AA and GABA contents in wheat wholemeal. The main biogenic amines in tested wholemeal were putrescine and spermidine. Wheat wholemeal, fermented for 48 h, was selected for biscuit preparation due to its lower pH and higher LAB viable counts. The acrylamide concentration showed correlations with individual VCs. In conclusion, wheat biscuits prepared with 200 and 250 g of non-fermented “Silva” wheat wholemeal, 50 and 100 g of non-fermented and fermented blue wheat wholemeal, as well as 50, 100, and 150 g of non-fermented black wheat wholemeal can be recommended for achieving appropriate acrylamide concentration reduction without impairing the sensory acceptability of the product.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Risk management in finance: Six sigma and other next-generation techniques

xxvi+327hlm.;25c

Underlying determinants of health provider choice in urban slums: results from a discrete choice experiment in Ahmedabad, India

Background:  Severe underutilization of healthcare facilities and lack of timely, affordable and effective access to healthcare services in resource-constrained, bottom of pyramid (BoP) settings are well-known issues, which foster a negative cycle of poor health outcomes, catastrophic health expenditures and poverty. Understanding BoP patients' healthcare choices is vital to inform policymakers' effective resource allocation and improve population health and livelihood in these areas. This paper examines the factors affecting the choice of health care provider in low-income settings, specifically the urban slums in India. Method:  A discrete choice experiment was carried out to elicit stated preferences of BoP populations. A total of 100 respondents were sampled using a multi-stage systemic random sampling of urban slums. Attributes were selected based on previous studies in developing countries, findings of a previous exploratory study in the study setting and qualitative interviews. Provider type and cost, distance to the facility, attitude of doctor and staff, appropriateness of care and familiarity with doctor were the attributes included in the study. A random effects logit regression was used to perform the analysis. Interaction effects were included to control for individual characteristics. Results:  The relatively most valued attribute is appropriateness of care (beta=3.4213, p = 0.00), followed by familiarity with the doctor (beta=2.8497, p = 0.00) and attitude of the doctor and staff towards the patient (beta=1.8132, p = 0.00). As expected, respondents prefer shorter distance (beta=-0.0722, p = 0.00) but the relatively low importance of the attribute distance to the facility indicate that respondents are willing to travel longer if any of the other statistically significant attributes are present. Also, significant socioeconomic differences in preferences were observed, especially with regard to the type of provider. Conclusion:  The analyses did not reveal universal preferences for a provider type, but overall the traditional provider type is not well accepted. It also became evident that respondents valued appropriateness of care above other attributes. Despite the study limitations, the results have broader policy implications in the context of Indian government's attempts to reduce high healthcare out-of-pocket expenditures and provide universal health coverage for its population. The government's attempt to emphasize the focus on traditional providers should be carefully reconsidered

Recent Advances in Biotechnological Methods for Wheat Gluten Immunotoxicity Abolishment – a Review

Due to the increasing incidence of gluten intolerance, researchers are focusing on finding ways to eliminate immunotoxicity of wheat, this would allow the use of wheat products for gluten-intolerant consumers. The article reviews recent studies on biotechnological methods to eliminate and reduce the immunogenicity of wheat products. So far, many gluten removal methods have been proposed, but their efficacy levels were quite different. Enzymatic treatment of gluten fragments can be considered the simplest and non-invasive tool to eliminate the toxicity of gliadins and glutenins. For this purpose, various endogenous enzymes derived from cereals, and also those of bacterial, fungal, plant, and animal origin can be used in food processing. Some of the enzymes hydrolyze gluten, others block the action of toxic protein fragments. The majority of studies were carried out using lactic acid bacteria cultures, as single strains or in consortia. Satisfactory results have been achieved using bacterial and plant enzymes, but the complete elimination of gluten immunogenicity is still possible by using fungal proteases, engineered enzymes or combining several treatments, for example, by using lactic acid fermentation or germination with fungal proteases. However, the question of how degradation of gluten affects the quality of flour (dough) in practice remains unanswered. It is not clear whether the products of such wheat flour are better and safer than those made from starches and whether their price and quality are acceptable to consumers. The insights presented in this review will be helpful to other researchers and cereal-based food producers in choosing ways to reduce gluten immunogenicity