Recent progress in promoting the bioavailability of polyphenols in plant-based foods.

Polyphenols are important constituents of plant-based foods, exhibiting a range of beneficial effects. However, many phenolic compounds have low bioavailability because of their low water solubility, chemical instability, food matrix effects, and interactions with other nutrients. This article reviews various methods of improving the bioavailability of polyphenols in plant-based foods, including fermentation, natural deep eutectic solvents, encapsulation technologies, co-crystallization and amorphous solid dispersion systems, and exosome complexes. Several innovative technologies have recently been deployed to improve the bioavailability of phenolic compounds. These technologies may be utilized to increase the healthiness of plant-based foods. Further research is required to better understand the mechanisms of action of these novel approaches and their potential to be used in food production.

Interactions between proteins and phenolics: effects of food processing on the content and digestibility of phenolic compounds.

Phenolic compounds have recently become one of the most interesting topics in different research areas, especially in food science and nutrition due to their health-promoting effects. Phenolic compounds are found together with macronutrients and micronutrients in foods and within several food systems. The coexistence of phenolics and other food components can lead to their interaction resulting in complex formation. This review article aims to cover the effects of thermal and non-thermal processing techniques on the protein-phenolic interaction especially focusing on the content and digestibility of phenolics by discussing recently published research articles. It is clear that the processing conditions and individual properties of phenolics and proteins are the most effective factors in the final content and intestinal fates of phenolic compounds. Besides, thermal and non-thermal treatments, such as high-pressure processing, pulsed electric field, cold plasma, ultrasonication, and fermentation may induce alterations  in those interactions. Still, new investigations are required for different food processing treatments by using a wide range of food products to enlighten new functional and healthier food product design, to provide the optimized processing conditions of foods for obtaining better quality, higher nutritional properties, and health benefits. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.

Use of excipient emulsions for improving the bioaccessibility of antioxidants in tomato sauce.

In this study, tomato sauces were prepared by adding different levels of emulsified oil (0, 5, 10, or 20 wt%) to tomato pomace. The effects of adding these excipient emulsions on the concentration, bioaccessibility, and bioactivity of the carotenoids and phenolics in the tomato sauces were then determined. The carotenoid and phenolic profiles were analyzed by HPLC and LC-MS/MS, respectively. The bioaccessibility values of the lycopene, lutein, and ß-carotene were around 36-82%, 73-112%, and 67-94% for tomato sauces with excipient emulsions, respectively. In contrast, they were considerably lower for tomato sauces without excipient emulsions, being around 24-31%, 69-71%, and 45-62%, respectively. The TPC and TAC values of the tomato sauces with the excipient emulsions were significantly higher than those without. Considerably higher concentrations of carotenoids and phenolic compounds were detected in the tomato sauce samples containing the excipient emulsions. These results suggest that the presence of the oil droplets increased the extractability, stability, and bioaccessibility of the nutraceuticals in the tomato sauce.

Novel Approaches in the Valorization of Agricultural Wastes and Their Applications.

Worldwide, a huge amount of agricultural food wastes and byproducts containing valuable bioactive compounds are generated, especially throughout the entire supply chain. Minimizing food wastes and byproducts is the first option to avoid environmental problems, and to help the economy and the society. Although many countries implement policies to reduce food wastes and byproducts, and different management methods are available to utilize agricultural food wastes, they are still produced annually. Nanotechnological and biotechnological approaches are recently used as novel and green applications to valorize agricultural food wastes and improve their stability and applicability. In this Review, these approaches are covered in detail with given examples. Another valorization way of consumable food waste is using it for functional food production. This Review focuses on specific examples of functional foods with food waste as an ingredient. In addition, the problems and limitations of waste management and valorization methods are investigated, considering future perspectives.