Multivariate analysis of antioxidant power and polyphenolic composition in red wines

It has been demonstrated that the dietary intake of compounds having antioxidant activity is very important, and various chemical, biological, and electrochemical methods have been proposed to evaluate the antioxidant power of compounds such as polyphenols. Wine, although nonessential, has a high polyphenol content up to 2-3 g/L in red wines obtained by traditional maceration. The polyphenol content of wines is usually evaluated by the Folin reagent, which provides an appropriate response to the requirements of wine manufacturers. Because the presence of individual polyphenols may be evaluated by HPLC, more or less selective methods toward the various chemical classes of polyphenols have been developed. An HPLC method set up recently was applied to evaluate how individual polyphenols contributed to the overall antioxidant power (AOP) of 60 Italian red wines, trying to identify the effect that individual compounds may have on the total AOP. Application of the multivariate analysis allowed us to detect some determining compounds such as gallic acid and some flavonols. On the basis of the correlation between two traditional chemical methods, namely the total polyphenol determination by the Folin reagent and the flavanol determination by the condensation reaction with p-(dimethylamino)-cinnamaldehyde, it was shown that the use of these two merely chemical methods is well correlated (r = 0.83 and 0.87) to an AOP evaluation of red wines

Metodo para preparar derivados hipoallergenicos de frutas Y/O vegetales

The object of the present invention is a novel transformation process of fruits and vegetables for manufacturing industrial derivatives such as hypoallergenic juices, puree and concentrates, etc. mainly intended for individuals suffering from OAS (Oral Allergy Syndrome) following the consumption of traditional industrial derivatives, but also for general consumption to prevent sensitization in atopic patients. In a second aspect, the present invention also relates to the products obtainable by means of said process

Experimental studies to obtain rice malt

The production of a rice malt that could be used as an ingredient in gluten-free foodstuffs, especially for brewing purposes, was studied. Different rice varieties were characterized through morphological description and chemical-physical analyses. Each rice variety was germinated in the laboratory in jute bags for different periods. To produce a rice malt with a good diastatic power, steeping and airing conditions, as well as time and temperature during germination, were studied. The endogenous enzymatic activities, which developed during the malting process and which characterize the diastatic power of the obtained rice malts, were also measured. The conditions of the malting process and the drying step were checked and optimized to produce rice malt with the desired color and aroma. Once the most efficient malting procedure had been chosen, the most suitable rice variety underwent the germination and kilning process in a pilot plant. Some saccharification tests were performed in the laboratory to verify the sugar content of worts obtained from the produced rice malts and whether they could be successfully fermented. The results showed that a good rice malt could be obtained, even if it has a lower enzymatic activity than barley mal

Application of Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy (NIRS) to the Evaluation of Carotenoids Content in Maize

The importance of including antioxidant compounds in the diet is well recognized. These compounds remediate the detrimental activity on animal cells of the so-called reactive oxygen substances (ROS). Many papers have reported on the determination of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic antioxidant compounds present in a large number of vegetables, and all methods involve the extraction from the matrix of the compounds to be determined. Because some problems may arise, such as the completeness of the extraction and the stability of the extracted compound during the extraction steps, the possibility of analyzing these compounds in the native matrix would be useful. Here is reported the application of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to the determination of the content of carotenoids in maize, comparing the obtained data with those derived from high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) determination of the extract obtained from the same samples. Equations for predicting carotenoid content in maize were derived using scores from modified partial leastsquares (MPLS) as independent variables. Cross-validation procedures indicated good correlations between HPLC values and NIRS estimates. The results show that NIRS, a well-established and widely applied technique, can be applied to determine the maize carotenoids and that samples are readily analyzed in minutes, the only required step being their grinding

M\ue9todo para preparar derivados hipoallerg\ue9nicos de frutas y/u hortalizas

The object of the present invention is a novel transformation process of fruits and vegetables for manufacturing industrial derivatives such as hypoallergenic juices, puree and concentrates, etc. mainly intended for individuals suffering from OAS (Oral Allergy Syndrome) following the consumption of traditional industrial derivatives, but also for general consumption to prevent sensitization in atopic patients. In a second aspect, the present invention also relates to the products obtainable by means of said process