Pseudocereal Oils, Authenticated by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, and their Chemopreventive Properties.

Amaranth, quinoa, and buckwheat are the representatives of pseudocereals, different parts and by-products of which are used in daily nutrition and food processing industry. However, only scarce information exists on the bioactivity of their oils. Thus, oils obtained from amaranth, buckwheat, and red, yellow, and white quinoa seeds were evaluated in terms of their nutritional (fatty acid profile, squalene), cytotoxic (against normal and neoplastic gastrointestinal, prostate, and skin cells), anti-inflammatory and antiradical (interleukin 6, TNF-alpha, nitric oxide, DPPH, Total phenolics, and superoxide dismutase) potential in the in vitro model. Linoleic (42.9-52.5%) and oleic (22.5-31.1%) acids were the two main unsaturated, while palmitic acid (4.9-18.6%) was the major saturated fatty acid in all evaluated oils. Squalene was identified in all evaluated oils with the highest content in amaranth oil (7.6 g/100 g), and the lowest in buckwheat oil (2.1 g/100 g). The evaluated oils exerted a high direct cytotoxic impact on cancer cells of different origins, but also revealed anti-inflammatory and antiradical potentials. Yellow quinoa oil was the most active, especially toward skin (A375; IC50 6.3 µg/mL), gastrointestinal (HT29 IC50 4.9 µg/mL), and prostate cancer cells (LNCaP IC50 7.6 µg/mL). The observed differences in the activity between the oils from the tested quinoa varieties deserve further studies. High selectivity of the oils was noted, which indicates their safety to normal cells. The obtained results indicate that the oils are good candidates for functional foods with perspective chemopreventive potential.

Effect of glandless cottonseed meal protein and maltodextrin as microencapsulating agents on spray-drying of sugarcane bagasse phenolic compounds.

This study examines the effect of different concentrations of glandless cottonseed meal protein (GCSMP) and maltodextrin (MD) as microencapsulating agents on the shelf life stability of phenolic compounds extracted from sugarcane bagasse (SCB). Sugarcane bagasse showed high antioxidant activity, which remained stable after 30 days of storage at 4°C. The best microencapsulation process was obtained with an MD and GCSMP ratio of 63.6% and 36.4%, respectively. The encapsulating agents' ratio affected the encapsulation efficiency (EE) (p < 0.05), while the spray-drying temperature did not show an effect on the EE of the SCB phenolic compounds (p > 0.05). The antioxidant activity of the microencapsulated phenolic compounds was affected by the MD/GCSMP ratio (p < 0.05). The combination of MD and GCSM showed a higher EE than MD (p < 0.05), while the EE was lower when the ratio of encapsulating agents consisted of either MD or GCSMP alone (p < 0.05). The total phenolic content (TPC) in the microcapsules was not affected by the GCSMP ratio (p < 0.05). The TPC of microencapsulated phenolic compounds was stable up to 100°C for 14 days. GCSMP containing microcapsules showed a corrugated surface compared to a more homogenized surface of MD. The resulting corrugated structure explains the higher EE showed by the GCSMP. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The use of sugarcane bagasse has been shown to add value to waste from agricultural and industrial sources. Glandless cottonseed meal protein is an excellent protective agent of antioxidants and can be extracted from agricultural waste. The encapsulated antioxidants can be used for the development of healthy, functional foods.