Development of reduced-fat cheeses with the addition of Agave fructans

Cheeses containing Agave fructans were compared with both full-fat and reduced-fat samples without fructans. Microstructure results showed that the cheeses obtained were very similar to the control samples (without fructans), even the full-fat control sample, demonstrating the texturing role of the carbohydrates. Regarding the composition, a moisture content of 47.96 ± 1.45 and a good protein retention with a low-fat content were found. Therefore, the cheese yield was not adversely affected, and no significant differences were observed in sensory aspects. Considering the health benefits of fructans and their abundance, this development could represent an innovation for dairy industry.Fil: Palatnik, Diana Raquel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química; ArgentinaFil: Aldrete Herrera, P.. Instituto Tecnológico de Tepic; MéxicoFil: Rinaldoni, Ana Noelia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química; ArgentinaFil: Ortiz Basurto, Rosa I. Instituto Tecnológico de Tepic; MéxicoFil: Campderrós, Mercedes Edith. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química; Argentin

Granola bars prepared with Agave tequilana ingredients: Chemical composition and in vitro starch hydrolysis

The stem of Agave tequilana is used to obtain: agave syrup (AS) and native agave fructans (NAF). Ground-agave-fiber is the by-product from fructans production. These ingredients were used to design a food ingredient: agave dietary fiber (ADF), containing NAF (30 g/100 g) as soluble dietary fiber (DF) and ground-agave-fiber (70 g/100 g) as an insoluble DF. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of the incorporation of A. tequilana ingredients (AS, NAP, ADF) on the proximate composition, in vitro starch hydrolysis (HI) and predicted glycemic index (pGI) of oat-based granola bars. Total DF (82.03 g/100 g) was the main component in ADF, with 22.8 g/100 g soluble DF. Granola bars were prepared by substituting honey and wheat flour by AS and ADF. A sensory test was used to select the level of sugar substitution by NAF, where 62 g NAF/100 g was the preferred one. The effect of each ingredient on the chemical composition was evaluated using a 2(3-1) fractional design. Soluble DF in a granola bar containing a combination of three agave ingredients (AS, NAP and ADF) was 23.35 g/100 g, with HI and pGI values of 74 and 72%, respectively, pointing this product as a moderate GI food. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Use of Electrosprayed Agave Fructans as Nanoencapsulating Hydrocolloids for Bioactives

High degree of polymerization Agave fructans (HDPAF) are presented as a novel encapsulating material. Electrospraying coating (EC) was selected as the encapsulation technique and β-carotene as the model bioactive compound. For direct electrospraying, two encapsulation methodologies (solution and emulsion) were proposed to find the formulation which provided a suitable particle morphology and an adequate concentration of β-carotene encapsulated in the particles to provide a protective effect of β-carotene by the nanocapsules. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images showed spherical particles with sizes ranging from 440 nm to 880 nm depending on the concentration of HDPAF and processing parameters. FTIR analysis confirmed the interaction and encapsulation of β-carotene with HDPAF. The thermal stability of β-carotene encapsulated in HDPAF was evidenced by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The study showed that β-carotene encapsulated in HDPAF by the EC method remained stable for up to 50 h of exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light. Therefore, HDPAF is a viable option to formulate nanocapsules as a new encapsulating material. In addition, EC allowed for increases in the ratio of β-carotene:polymer, as well as its photostability

Effects of consuming diets containing Agave tequilana dietary fibre and jamaica calyces on body weight gain and redox status in hypercholesterolemic rats

Dietary fibre (DF) obtained from Agave tequilana, which is rich in fructans and insoluble DF, and jamaica calyces (Hibiscus sabdariffa), which is rich in DF and phenolic compounds, were assessed as new potential functional ingredients using the hypercholesterolemic animal model. Wistar rats (200-250 g) were divided into 3 groups (n = 8) and fed with cholesterol-rich diets supplemented with cellulose (CC, control), agave DF (ADF) or ADF with jamaica calyces (ADF-JC). After consuming the test diets for 5 weeks, weight gain in the ADF-JC group was significantly lower than in the other groups. The ADF and ADF-JC groups had a reduced concentration of cholesterol transporters in the caecum tissue, although no changes were observed in the plasma lipid profile. Both treatments improved the redox status by reducing the malondialdehyde serum levels and protein oxidative damage, compared to the CC group. DF from A. tequilana alone, or in combination with jamaica calyces, shows promising potential as a bioactive ingredient. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.This research was supported by projects CSD2007-00063 (CICYT), RTA2007-00036 (INIA) and CONSOLIDER-INGENIO (CSD 2007-00063).Peer Reviewe