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Gel based formulations offer an opportunity to fortify bioactives in food. However, a comparative evaluation of gel systems is scantly available. Thus, this study intended to evaluate the impact of various gel formulations (hydrogel, oleogel, emulsion gel, bigels of different compositions) on the delivery and antioxidant activity of lutein. Ethyl cellulose (EC,15 %w/w) and guar-xanthan gum mixture (1:1,1.5 %w/w) was used as oleogelator and hydrogelator, respectively. The microscopic evaluation indicated an oil-based continuous-phase for bigel with 75% oleogel. An increase in oleogel content enhanced textural and rheological properties. An increase in hydrogel composition (25%-75%) of bigel improved the lutein release (70.4%-83.2%). The highest release of lutein was recorded for emulsion gel (84.9%) and bigel with 25% oleogel (83.2%). The antioxidant activity was comparatively lower in gastric medium than simulated intestinal fluid. It could be inferred that the gel matrix significantly affected the lutein release, antioxidant profile, physiochemical and mechanical characteristics., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The ubiquity, low cost and biocompatibility make polysaccharides a material of choice in food, pharmaceutical, cosmeceutical, textile and paper industries. From the age-old process of pectin addition in jams to the latest developments of bio-nanocomposites with polysaccharides in biosensing, developments in applications of polysaccharides and their derivatives have gone hand-in-hand with the technological progress. This review gives an overview on the recent advances in the use of microbial exopolysaccharides, polysaccharide modifications, conjugation with non-polysaccharide biomolecules, their applications in nutraceutical/drug delivery and their therapeutic potential along with gelled matrices, nanotechnology and packaging advances. The safety, toxicity and potential biological activities such as immunomodulatory, antioxidant, anticancer, hypocholesterolemic, hypoglycemic and prebiotic have been thoroughly reviewed. The ability of polysaccharides and their derivatives in their nano forms coupled with their unique physicochemical properties has been exploited innovatively by researchers globally for applications such as delivery systems for drugs/nutraceuticals/phytochemicals among many others which are also discussed., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The present article describes extraction of chitosan from prawn shells waste and its application in thermal stabilization of Fusarium sp. ICT SAC1 cutinase by non-covalent and covalent conjugation. Extracted chitosan represented 78.40% degree of deacetylation (DDA), a molecular weight of 173 kDa and was soluble in 1% acetic acid with 2.8 ± 0.15% insoluble matter. The structural (FTIR, NMR and XRD) and thermal characterization (DSC and TGA) indicated unique properties for chitosan. Plausible chitosan structure was also deduced. The water and fat binding capacities were 923% and 598.05% while 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrzyl radicals scavenging activity was 60.62 and 11.83 μM Trolox-Equivalent/ml. The K m and V max values of free cutinase were 0.82 mM and 20.64 mM/min which increased by 14.63 and 17.07%; and 27.18 and 43.94% after non-covalent and covalent conjugation, respectively. A marginal increment in thermal inactivation constants and energy (k d , t 1/2 , D and E d value) were also noticed for cutinase-chitosan conjugates. The enthalpy, free energy and entropy values increased marginally in covalent conjugate vis-à-vis non-covalent conjugated and free cutinase. A reduction in α-helix, random coils and β-sheets content was noted after conjugation., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Pickles in the Indian market contain ascorbic acid from the raw material used and benzoate as an added preservative that are involved in the formation of benzene in soft drinks. In this work, 24 market pickle samples were surveyed for benzene content, as well as its precursors and other constituents that influence its formation. The analysis showed that pickle samples were high in acid content (low pH) and showed significant amount of ascorbic acid, minerals (Cu and Fe), and benzoic acid present in them. Also, most samples exhibited high antioxidant activity that might be attributed to the ingredients used, such as fruits and spices. The solid-phase microextraction headspace gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method was developed in-house for benzene analysis. Eleven of 24 samples had benzene, with the highest concentration of 4.36 ± 0.82 μg of benzene per kg of pickle for a lime pickle that was also reported to have highest benzoic acid and considerably less hydroxyl radical ((•)OH) scavenging activity. However, benzene levels for all 11 samples were considerably below the World Health Organization regulatory limit of 10 μg/kg for benzene in mineral water. Studies on model systems revealed that the high antioxidant activity of Indian pickles may have had a strong inhibitory effect on benzene formation.

Catechin was oligomerized using free laccase and laccase-gum Arabic conjugate. The process of oligomerization was optimized with respect to solvent, ratio of solvent to buffer (0.2:10 to 1:10), pH of buffer (3-10), enzyme (575-18,400 U/mg) and substrate concentration (1-7mM). Maximum production of oligomer was observed in methanol at ratio 0.6:10 of methanol:buffer of pH 5 using 2300 U/mg of laccase and 5mM of catechin. The laccase-gum Arabic conjugate showed lower activity but higher stability than free laccase in methanol. Free laccase produced cross linked water-insoluble oligomer, whereas conjugated laccase produced linear water-soluble oligomer. The linear water-soluble oligomer showed higher antioxidant activity, as determined by the DPPH assay, and reducing power as compared to monomer making it suitable for biological applications. The molecular weight of the linear oligomer was found to be 13.14kDa, which suggested it to be composed of 45 monomer units. Further characterizations of linear and cross linked oligomer were done using FTIR and differential scanning calorimetry., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Areca nut (Areca catechu L.) or betel nut, a commercial cash crop, is a rich source of polyphenols but also contains toxic alkaloids, mainly arecoline. Separation of these bioactive polyphenols from toxic constituents could propel the safe and beneficial use of betel nut; also it will help arecanut processing industries to produce arecoline-free products. With the aim to develop an effective method for maximum extraction of polyphenols with minimum arecoline, several factors such as nature of the solvent, pH (2-10), substrate concentration (6-14 %) and extraction time (30-150 min) under shaking conditions were evaluated. Qualitative analysis was done using spectrophotometry and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)., Results: Maximum extraction of polyphenols (407.47 mg GAE g(-1)), total tannin and its antioxidant activity with minimum arecoline (1.73 mg g(-1) of sample) was achieved by using 80% acetone at pH 4 for 90 min with 10% w/v substrate under shaking conditions., Conclusion: Solvent extraction under optimized parameters gave maximum polyphenols with minimum extraction of arecoline, and highest ratio of polyphenols to arecoline. HPLC and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry results confirmed the presence of catechin and epicatechin in the extract, which suggests its potential as a source of bioactives., (© 2013 Society of Chemical Industry.)