Efficient synthesis of rare sugars from galactose in hot compressed water using eggshells as an environmentally friendly catalyst.

Aqueous galactose solutions containing eggshell was heated at 120 °C to produce calcium supplements containing rare sugars. Galactose was isomerized to rare sugars with improving rare sugar yields compared to those without eggshell. Organic acids were also formed as byproducts during the reaction. These acids were neutralized by dissolving eggshells with increasing the calcium ion concentration in the solution. When eggshell components (calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, or calcium phosphate) were used for the treatment, rare sugars were also formed. Especially, addition of magnesium carbonate improved rare sugar yield, but byproduct formation became more pronounced. Eggshells used in the treatment were used for repeated treatments. When eggshells were used three times, rare sugar yield changed only slightly but the selectivity of rare sugars improved significantly. By these processes, we obtained an aqueous solution of rare sugars containing calcium ion at 295 mg/L, which has potential as ingredients for dietary supplements.

Interdependent Oxidation of Eicosapentaenoic Acid and Docosahexaenoic Acid in Isada Krill Oil Encapsulated with Maltodextrin by Spray-drying.

The major polyunsaturated fatty acids in krill oil extracted from Euphausia pacifica, known as Isada on the Sanriku coast, are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acid. A kinetic model was proposed to explain the relationship between the fractions of unoxidized EPA (Y E) and unoxidized DHA (Y D) in the oil spray-dried with maltodextrin and stored at 25, 50, and 70℃. The relationship between Y E and Y D during storage was independent of the temperature and could be expressed using the proposed model. This indicated that the oxidation of EPA and DHA in krill oil was interdependent.

Solubility and mass transfer coefficient of oxygen through gas- and water-lipid interfaces.

The solubility of oxygen and its transfer rate to the lipid phase play important roles in lipid oxidation, which affects the taste and safety of lipid-containing foods. In this study, we measured the Henry's constants (solubility) of oxygen for fatty acids, fatty acid esters, and triacylglycerols (TAGs; vegetable oils), as well as the mass transfer coefficients of oxygen at the gas- and water-lipid interfaces. The constants and coefficients were estimated by analyzing the change over time in the oxygen partial pressure or concentration in the closed container based on the mass balance equations of oxygen in the gas and liquid phases. The constant for water obtained by the method used in this study was in agreement with the previously reported value to confirm the validity of the method. The constants for lipids depended on the lipid type, and were higher in the order of fatty acid ester, fatty acid, and TAG. That is, the solubility of oxygen decreased in this order. For all lipids, the constant increased as the number of carbon atoms in the fatty acid chain increased. The constants for fatty acids and their esters were linearly correlated with the enthalpies of evaporation of the lipids. The mass transfer coefficients of oxygen at the gas-liquid interface were on the order of 10-5 m/s for water and methyl dodecanoate and of 10-6 m/s for TAG (rapeseed oil). The coefficient at the water-lipid interface was on the order of 10-6 m/s. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The Henry's constants (solubility) and transfer rate of oxygen to the lipid phase, fatty acids, fatty acid esters, and triacylglycerols (TAG) were measured. The lipids solubilized three to five times more oxygen than water, and mass transfer rate of oxygen at gas- and water-lipid interfaces were almost same. The constants for fatty acids and fatty acid esters were linearly correlated to their enthalpies of evaporation, and this correlation is expected to be useful for estimating the Henry's constants for other fatty acids and their esters.

Analysis of Nonisothermal Crystallization of Rapeseed Oil by Deconvolution of Differential Scanning Calorimetry Curve.

Crystallization of vegetable oil affects the efficiency of the oil-refining process and the quality of foods containing the oil. However, the crystallization of the oil is a complicated phenomenon. The crystallization behavior of rapeseed oil was investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) at a cooling rate of 0.5-10°C/min. It was found that multiple crystal structures with a metastable crystal formed at high cooling rates. A deconvolution technique was applied to analyze kinetically the DSC curves with some peaks. Each DSC curve was separated into 3-5 peaks fitted with an asymmetric double sigmoid function and a Lorentz one. Each peak was normalized by its integrated value, and the crystallinity was calculated. Using the crystallinity values, Avrami, Ozawa, and Friedman plots were obtained. The cooling rate was found to affect the crystallization mechanism and triacylglycerol (TAG) composition of the crystal in the separated peak. Even if the peak numbers are the same, the TAG composition of the crystals might be different depending on the cooling rate. Judging from the peak top temperature and area of the separated peaks, trioleoyl glycerol and 1,2-dilinolenyl-3-linoleyl glycerol would be included in crystals in the peaks with the largest and lowest peak top temperatures, respectively. The relationship between the peak top temperature and cooling rate was unique. This suggests that the crystallization behavior during isothermal storage was different from that in a nonisothermal process.

Induction Periods for Lipid Crystallization of Various Vegetable Oils.

The induction period for crystallization, defined as the time required to crystallize, was discussed during isothermal storage at -5 to -45°C for various vegetable oils; olive, safflower, rapeseed, corn, rice bran, soybean, and linseed oils. The induction periods, largely dependent on the oil type and storage temperature, were classified into two groups. The induction periods of corn, rice bran, soybean, and linseed oils were monotonically shortened as the storage temperature decreased. On the other hand, the induction periods for rapeseed, olive, safflower oils and the mixtures of rapeseed and soybean oils, and of olive and safflower oils did not simply change or elongate with a decrease in storage temperature. The induction periods could be formulated using two parameters. One was an expected value of the melting point of the oil, which was calculated from its fatty acid composition. The other was a molar fraction of triacylglycerol composed of the same fatty acids in the oil. The crystallization and melting processes of the oils under nonisothermal conditions were also analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). It was suggested that the induction period was also predictable from the peak shape, peak number, onset temperature, and peak area in the DSC curve of the oil during the crystallization process.

Effect of oil droplet size on the oxidative stability of spray-dried flaxseed oil powders.

The effect of the size of oil droplets on the oxidative stability of flaxseed oil in spray-dried powders was investigated. Maltodextrin with a dextrose equivalent of 25 was used as a wall material, and sodium caseinate and transglutaminase-polymerized sodium caseinate were used as emulsifiers. The oxidative stability of flaxseed oil encapsulated in the spray-dried powders was evaluated using lipid oxidation and conductometric determination tests at 105 °C. The powders containing larger oil droplets exhibited higher surface oil content after spray drying, and higher peroxide value and conductivity after storage at 105 °C. Removal of the surface oil from the powders by washing with hexane significantly decreased the conductivity. The results indicated that the surface oil of the spray-dried flaxseed oil powders affected the oxidation stability.

Degradation kinetics of passion fruit pectin in subcritical water.

The degradation of passion fruit pectin by subcritical water treatment in a continuous flow-type reactor was investigated in the temperature range of 80-160 °C at a constant pressure of 5 MPa. Changes in the degree of polymerization and reducing end formation were monitored and modeled by applying the Emsley equation and zeroth-order kinetics, respectively. The results showed that both the pectin degradation rate constant and the change in the amount of reducing end were enhanced by temperature, and that the temperature dependence of these parameters obeyed the Arrhenius relationship. The activation energies for pectin degradation and reducing end formation were 62.8 and 86.9 kJ/mol, respectively. The non-linear relationship between the ratio of broken galacturonic acid units to the total galacturonic acid units and the change in the amount of reducing end indicated that pectin cleavage became easier as hydrolysis progressed.

Destabilization of mayonnaise induced by lipid crystallization upon freezing.

The thermal and rheological history of mayonnaise during freezing and its dispersion stability after the freeze-thaw process were investigated. Mayonnaise was cooled to freeze and stored at -20 to -40 °C while monitoring the temperature; penetration tests were conducted on the mayonnaise, which was sampled at selected times during isothermal storage at -20 °C. Significant increases in the temperature and stress values due to water-phase crystallization and subsequent oil-phase crystallization were observed. The water phase crystallized during the cooling step in all the tested mayonnaise samples. The oil phases of the prepared mayonnaise (with rapeseed oil) and commercial mayonnaise crystallized during isothermal storage after 6 and 4 h, respectively, at -20 °C. The dispersion stability was evaluated from the separation ratio, which was defined as the weight ratio of separated oil after centrifuging to the total amount of oil in the commercial mayonnaise. The separation ratio rapidly increased after 4 h of freezing. This result suggests that crystallization of the oil phase is strongly related to the dispersion stability of mayonnaise.

Effects of Vegetable Oil Type and Lipophilic Emulsifiers on the Induction Period of Fat Crystallization.

The induction period of crystallization, which is defined as the time required for oil to start to crystallize, is useful indicator of the freeze-thaw stability of food emulsions such as mayonnaise. We investigated the induction period of vegetable oils with low melting points, such as rapeseed and soybean oils, which are commonly employed for mayonnaise production. The induction period was measured by monitoring the temperature of a specimen during storage at low temperature. The induction period depended on the type of oil and lipophilic emulsifier, emulsifier concentration, and storage temperature. The effect of the oil type on the induction period depended on the composition of the oil. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analyses of the lipophilic emulsifiers suggested that the melting trend of the emulsifier is strongly related to the induction period.

Properties of rice stem extracts obtained by using subcritical fluids.

Rice stems were subjected to a subcritical fluid treatment at 230 °C, using ethanol or acetone at a dilution of 0-100% in water. The obtained extracts were determined for their yield, carbohydrate content, phenolic content, DPPH radical scavenging ability, and color. The highest yield and carbohydrate content were achieved with the subcritical 20% (v/v) organic solvent, while the highest phenolic content was obtained with subcritical 80% (v/v) acetone. The highest radical scavenging ability was achieved with subcritical 60% (v/v) ethanol and 80% (v/v) acetone. The lightness of the extracts obtained with subcritical ethanol and acetone was negatively correlation with their radical scavenging ability (R=-0.85). The relationship between the lightness and phenolic content of the extracts was not significant, suggesting that other substances in the extract could also possess radical scavenging ability.

Characteristics and antioxidative activity of the acetone-soluble and -insoluble fractions of a defatted rice bran extract obtained by using an aqueous organic solvent under subcritical conditions.

The defatted rice bran extracts obtained by being treated with various subcritical aqueous fluids at 230 °C for 5 min were further subjected to an acetone-solubilization treatment. The 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity depended on the total phenolic content of a sample, the acetone-soluble fraction of the extract obtained with 40% (v/v) aqueous acetone showing the highest activity. Based on the UV spectrometric and HPLC analyses, the substances with higher absorbance around 280 nm and higher hydrophobicity were found solubilizing out from the extracts into the acetone during fractionation. A gel permeation chromatographic analysis suggested that the extracts comprised monomeric or oligomeric substances. The antioxidative activity was evaluated by a DPPH radical scavenging activity analysis, rancidity test, and autoxidation analysis, revealing that it would be most likely to exert a radical scavenging effect more effectively during the initial stage of lipid oxidation than during the propagation stage.

Characteristics and antioxidative ability of defatted rice bran extracts obtained using several extractants under subcritical conditions.

Defatted rice bran was treated with water, 50% (v/v) ethanol, ethanol, 50% (v/v) acetone, or acetone. The treatment temperature and time were fixed at 230°C and 5 min, respectively. The treatment with 50% (v/v) acetone produced the highest yield of 0.549 g-extract/g-bran, and the extract exhibited the highest DPPH radical scavenging activity of 0.495 mmol-ascorbic acid/g-extract. The extract obtained with 50% (v/v) acetone showed the higher UV absorbance and highest amount of hydrophobic substances in the HPLC analysis than the other extracts, and it also showed the highest antioxidative ability in both the rancidity test at 105°C and bulk oil system at 60°C for the longest induction period of 4.9 h and 14.4 h, respectively. However, the extracts obtained using various extractants showed no effect on the oxidation rate constant of linoleic acid in the bulk oil system.

Extraction of defatted rice bran with subcritical aqueous acetone.

Defatted rice bran extracts were obtained by subcritical treatment using aqueous acetone as extractant. Treatment with 40% (v/v) acetone at 230 °C for 5 min yielded an extract with the highest 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity (0.274 mmol of ascorbic acid/g of bran), total carbohydrate (0.188 g/g of bran), protein (0.512 g/g of bran), and total phenolic contents (88.2 mg of gallic acid/g of bran). The effect of treatment temperature (70-230 °C) was investigated using 40% (v/v) acetone, and the extract under 230 °C treatment showed the highest levels of all the determinations described above. The extracts obtained with various concentrations of aqueous acetone were subjected to UV absorption spectra and HPLC analysis, and the results showed changes in composition and polarity. Antioxidative activity evaluated against oxidation of bulk linoleic acid of the extract obtained with 80% (v/v) acetone was higher than that not only of the extract from subcritical water treatment but also of that obtained 40% (v/v) acetone treatment.

Properties of rice straw extract after subcritical water treatment.

Rice straw was separated into four parts: the upper, middle, and lower parts of the stem, and the leaf. They were treated with subcritical water at 140 to 260 °C. The yield, carbohydrate, protein, and phenolic contents were obtained as well as the UV-Vis absorption spectra and the radical scavenging activity of the extracts. The extracts obtained from the stem parts had almost the same characteristics and were different from those of the leaf part. The extracts, prepared at higher temperature, exhibited higher radical scavenging ability. The radical scavenging ability and the phenolic content showed a correlation (R2=0.92), suggesting that the phenolic substances in the extract cause its antioxidant ability.

Subcritical water extraction of flavoring and phenolic compounds from cinnamon bark (Cinnamomum zeylanicum).

Cinnamon bark (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) powder was treated with subcritical water at 150 and 200°C in a semi-continuous system at a constant flow rate (3 mL/min) and pressure (6 MPa). Major flavoring compounds, i.e., cinnamaldehyde, cinnamic acid, cinnamyl alcohol and coumarin, were extracted at lower recoveries than the extraction using methanol, suggesting that degradation of these components might occur during the subcritical water treatment. Caffeic, ferulic, p-coumaric, protocatechuic and vanillic acids were identified from the subcritical water treatment. Extraction using subcritical water was more effective to obtain these acids than methanol (50% v/v) in both number of components and recovery, especially at 200°C. Subcritical water treatment at 200°C also resulted in a higher total phenolic content and DPPH radical scavenging activity than the methanol extraction. The DPPH radical scavenging activity and total phenolic content linearly correlated but the results suggested that the extraction at 200°C might result in other products that possessed a free radical scavenging activity other than the phenolic compounds.

Degradation kinetics of gamma-oryzanol in antioxidant-stripped rice bran oil during thermal oxidation.

Gamma-oryzanol, a group of phytosterol ferulates found in rice bran, possesses antioxidative activity and other bioactivities. The kinetics of thermal degradation of gamma-oryzanol in stripped rice bran oil (SRBO) were investigated under heating at 132, 160, 192 and 222 degrees C for 480, 140, 60 and 50 h, respectively. Losses of the overall gamma-oryzanol and its components (cycloartenyl ferulate, 24-methylene cycloartanyl ferulate, campesteryl ferulate and beta-sitosteryl ferulate) could be expressed by the first-order kinetics model. The rate constant of thermal degradation of gamma-oryzanol increased with increasing heating temperatures. The temperature dependence of the obtained rate constants was found to obey the Arrhenius equation. Campesteryl ferulate showed slightly more thermally resistant than other components at temperature lower than 160 degrees C. However, the change in the absorbance from 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay as a function of heating time exhibited the same pattern for the SRBO with and without gamma-oryzanol for all studied heating temperatures.

Production and characterization of functional substances from a by-product of rice bran oil and protein production by a compressed hot water treatment.

A by-product of rice bran oil and protein production was treated with water and compressed hot water at 20 degrees C to 260 degrees C for 5 min, and at 200 degrees C and 260 degrees C for 5 to 120 min. Each extract was evaluated for its yield, radical scavenging activity, carbohydrate, protein, total phenolic and furfural contents, molecular-mass distribution and antioxidative activity. The maximum yield was obtained at 200 degrees C. The radical scavenging activity and the protein, total phenolic and furfural contents of the extract increased with increasing temperature. However, the carbohydrate content abruptly decreased when treated at above 200 degrees C. The extract treated at 260 degrees C for 5 min exhibited suppressive activity toward the autoxidation of linoleic acid. Each extract obtained at temperatures lower than or equal to 200 degrees C exhibited emulsifying ability.

Properties of extracts from defatted rice bran by its subcritical water treatment.

Defatted rice bran was extracted with water and subcritical water at 50-250 degrees C for 5 min. The highest extract yield was achieved at 200 degrees C, at which the maximum amounts of protein and carbohydrate were also obtained. The total phenolic and furfural contents, radical scavenging activity, and antioxidative activity for the autoxidation of linoleic acid increased with increasing treatment temperature. The bran extracts exhibited emulsifying activity except for the extract prepared at 250 degrees C, which was concomitant with the disappearance of its high-molecular-mass substances. The extract prepared at 200 degrees C also had the highest emulsion-stabilizing activity.

Bacteriostatic activities of monoacyl sugar alcohols against thermophilic sporeformers.

The bacteriostatic activities of monoacyl sugar alcohols with different acyl chains and hydrophilic heads were examined against some thermophilic sporeformers. Monomyristoyl erythritol and xylitol efficaciously suppressed their spore development. The number and orientation of the hydroxyl groups also played important roles in this activity, and monomyristoyl xylitol exhibited the highest activity among the monomyristoyl sugar alcohols.

Preparation of a water-in-oil-in-water (W/O/W) type microcapsules by a single-droplet-drying method and change in encapsulation efficiency of a hydrophilic substance during storage.

Microcapsules of a water-in-oil-in-water (W/O/W) emulsion, which contained a hydrophilic substance, 1,3,6,8-pyrenetetrasulfonic acid tetrasodium salt (PTSA), in its inner aqueous phase, was prepared by hot-air-drying or freeze-drying the emulsion using a single-droplet-drying method. Pullulan, maltodextrin, or gum arabic was used as a wall material, and the oily phase was tricaprylin, oleic acid, olive oil, or a mixture of tricaprylin and olive oil. An encapsulation efficiency higher than 0.95 was reached except for the microcapsules prepared using gum arabic and oleic acid. The hot-air-dried microcapsules were generally more stable than the freeze-dried microcapsules at 37 degrees C and various relative humidities. The stability was higher for the microcapsules with tricaprylin as the oily phase than for the microcapsules with oleic acid. The higher stability of the microcapsules with tricaprylin would be ascribed to the lower partition coefficient of PTSA to the oily phase. There was a tendency for the stability to be higher at lower relative humidity for both the hot-air- and freeze-dried microcapsules. The volumetric fraction of olive oil in its mixture with tricaprylin did not significantly affect either the encapsulation efficiency or the stability of the hot-air-dried microcapsules.