Evaluation of the content of bioactive compounds in cocoa beans during the fermentation process.

Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.), one of the most important agricultural commodity products, is the key raw material for chocolate manufacturing. It is a source naturally occurring polyphenolic compounds and have been widely studied for their beneficial effects to human health. The objective of this study was to evaluate the fermentation time required to obtain more bioactive compounds and higher antioxidant activity in order to propose a mixture of unfermented and fermented cocoa beans in varying concentrations. Samples were collected every 12 h over a fermentation period of 144 h and evaluated according to their physico-chemical characteristics, as well as the content of bioactive compounds. It was verified that after 48 h of fermentation occurred a significant reduction in slate seeds, the appearance of partially fermented beans and the elevation of acidity and temperature. Until this period, a higher content of bioactive compounds with antioxidant activity was also observed. Thus, it is possible to propose a blend of cocoa beans fermented for 48 h and completely fermented beans to elaborate functional chocolates.

Development of arrowroot flour fermented by kefir grains.

The present study aims to produce arrowroot flour fermented by kefir grains, in addition to assessing the physicochemical, nutritional, and microbiological characteristics. Fermented arrowroot flour was produced at room temperature (approximately 25 to 28 °C). Fermentation was conducted in batch (6 kg of the substrate and 10% of kefir grains were added with homogenization every 3 hr). Samples were evaluated every 12 hr for both fermentation processes (fermentation process 1: 24 hr and fermentation process 2: 48 hr). The flours were evaluated for physicochemical, nutritional, and microbiological qualities, using a completely randomized design, considering only the variation in the duration of both fermentation processes (from 24 to 48 hr). The fermentation process positively modified the physicochemical, nutritional, and microbial characteristics of the flours. An increase in antioxidant activity (IC50 : control flour [CF] = 18.9 ± 0.13; arrowroot kefir flour [24 hr of fermentation; AKF1] = 15.36 ± 0.14; and arrowroot kefir flour [48 hr of fermentation; AKF2] = 13.84 ± 0.15), protein percentage (CF = 3.08 ± 0.12; AKF1 = 4.87 ± 0.33; and AKF2 = 6.00 ± 0.07), and organic acid (lactic, acetic, and propionic acids) production was observed, as well as modification in color (browning), the conformation of starch structures, and carbohydrate reduction. These results suggested that the "arrowroot kefir flours" open a new perspective for introduction in the market as a new product that can be used as food in nature or food ingredient for making bread, biscuits, pasta, and others, showing microbiological safety and functions properties. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The fermented flours present improved nutritional characteristics due to the fermentation process, such as higher antioxidant activity and protein levels. Regarding the population growth and societal demand for healthier food, one possibility is to provide a fermented flour with added nutritional value and raise knowledge about the arrowroot. Thus, these flours can be used in various food items or as an ingredient in food preparations for consumers that desire a healthy diet.

Classification and compositional characterization of different varieties of cocoa beans by near infrared spectroscopy and multivariate statistical analyses.

Effective and fast methods are important for distinguishing cocoa varieties in the field and in the processing industry. This work proposes the application of NIR spectroscopy as a potential analytical method to classify different varieties and predict the chemical composition of cocoa. Chemical composition and colour features were determined by traditional methods and then related with the spectral information by partial least-squares regression. Several mathematical pre-processing methods including first and second derivatives, standard normal variate and multiplicative scatter correction were applied to study the influence of spectral variations. The results of chemical composition analysis and colourimetric measurements show significant differences between varieties. NIR spectra of samples exhibited characteristic profiles for each variety and principal component analysis showed different varieties in according to spectral features.

Aflatoxins and ochratoxin A in different cocoa clones (Theobroma cacao L.) developed in the southern region of Bahia, Brazil.

Brazil is the sixth largest producer of cocoa beans in the world, after Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Indonesia, Nigeria and Cameroon. The southern region of Bahia stands out as the country's largest producer, accounting for approximately 60% of production. Due to damage caused by infestation of the cocoa crop with the fungus Moniliophthora perniciosa, which causes 'witch's broom disease', research in cocoa beans has led to the cloning of species that are resistant to the disease; however, there is little information about the development of other fungal genera in these clones, such as Aspergillus, which do not represent a phytopathogenicity problem but can grow during the pre-processing of cocoa beans and produce mycotoxins. Thus, the aim of this work was to determine the presence of aflatoxin (AF) and ochratoxin A (OTA) in cocoa clones developed in Brazil. Aflatoxin and ochratoxin A contamination were determined in 130 samples from 13 cocoa clones grown in the south of Bahia by ultra-performance liquid chromatography with a fluorescence detector. The method was evaluated for limit of detection (LOD) (0.05-0.90 µg kg-1), limit of quantification (0.10-2.50 µg kg-1) and recovery (RSD) (89.40-95.80%) for AFB1, AFB2, AFG1, AFG2 and OTA. Aflatoxin contamination was detected in 38% of the samples in the range of

Compostos bioativos e potencial antioxidante do pólen apícola produzido por abelhas africanizadas (Apis mellifera L) / Bioactive compounds contents and antioxidant potential of bee pollen produced by africanized bees (Apis mellifera L)

A concentração de compostos bioativos e a atividade antioxidante do pólen apícola podem variar em função da origem botânica. Trinta e três amostras de pólen apícola da região de Alagoinhas-BA foram analisadas quanto aos teores de compostos fenólicos, flavonoides, carotenoides e atividade antioxidante e, também, foi avaliada a correlação dos compostos bioativos com os tipos polínicos Mimosa pudica e Eucalyptus. O teor dos compostos fenólicos e sua fração de flavonoides nas amostras com ocorrência de Mimosa pudica variaram, respectivamente, de 14,31 a 64,14mg em GAE.g-1 de pólen e de 0,72 a 1,99mg e, nas amostras com ocorrência de Eucalyptus variaram, respectivamente, de 26,48 a 132,38mg em GAE.g-1 de pólen e de 1,55 a 2,5mg. O teor de carotenoides totais variou de 18,16 a 764,37µg.g-1 para o tipo polínico Mimosa pudica e de 3,01 a 46,08µg.g-1 para o tipo polínico Eucalyptus. A atividade antioxidante variou de 37,94 a 91,81% e de 78,96 a 93,21%, respectivamente, nas amostras com ocorrência do tipo polínico Mimosa pudica e Eucalyptus. Foi constatada correlação positiva entre o tipo polínico Eucalyptus e o teor de compostos fenólicos, porém não foi observada associação estatisticamente significativa entre o tipo polínico Mimosa pudica e o teor de carotenoides.

The concentration of bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of pollen may vary depending on thebotanical origin. Thirty-three samples of bee pollen from the region of Alagoinhas-BA were investigated on the concentrations of phenolic compounds, flavonoids, carotenoids and antioxidant activity, and the correlation between bioactive compounds and Eucalyptus and Mimosa pudica pollens was assessed. The phenolic compounds contents and of its flavonoid fraction in samples with the occurrence of Mimosa pudica ranged from 14.31 to 64.14 mg in GAE.g-1 of pollen and from 0.72 to 1.99 mg, respectively; the sampleswith the occurrence of Eucalyptus ranged from 26.48 to 132.38 mg GAE.g-1 of pollen and from 1.55 to 2.5mg, respectively. The carotenoids contents ranged from 18.16 to 764.37 μg.g-1 in Mimosa pudica pollentype, and from 3.01 to 46.08 μg.g-1 in Eucalyptus pollen type. The antioxidant activity ranged from 37.94 to 91.81% and from 78.96 to 93.21% in samples with occurrence of Eucalyptus and Mimosa pudica pollen types, respectively. A positive correlation between the Eucalyptus pollen type and the phenolic compounds contents was found, however no statistically significant correlation was observed between the Mimosa pudica pollen type and carotenoids contents.