A simple, efficient and economic method for obtaining iodate-rich chili pepper based chitosan edible thin film.

The present study was aimed at designing an iodine supplement in form of edible film made of iodate-coated chitosan (CS-IO3). Inclusion of so obtained films in diet can help in preventing thyroid cancer, leading to improved public health. Chili pepper was coated with iodate thin film (1.5 µm). The iodate-rich film is ready-to-eat serving valuable nutrients. Stability studies of CS-IO3 film using water dipping revealed that there was no leaching of iodate ion, due to the strong interactions between cationic amino group of chitosan and iodate ion. The film showed no change in its antioxidant activity. Iodate concentration in the film was determined at 620 nm selectively, based on the decolorization of malachite green economic method. Iodate content in fruits coated with 1.5% (w/v) CS-IO3 was 11.5 mg g-1 of dry film sample. The iodate-rich samples could be stored without much effect on its freshness, indicating a good shelf life.

New approach applying a pet fish air pump in liquid-phase microextraction for the determination of Sudan dyes in food samples by HPLC.

A new approach applying a pet fish air pump is introduced to develop an extraction method, namely, air-pump-enhanced emulsion, followed by salt-assisted emulsion breaking based on solidified floating organic drop microextraction for the extraction and preconcentration of Sudan I-IV before high-performance liquid chromatography. The applicability of this method was successfully demonstrated by determination of these dyes in four chili products that include chili powder, chili oil, chili sauce, and chili paste. An enrichment factor of 62 was obtained only with a sample solution of 5 mL. A linear range of 0.5-2500 ng/mL was obtained with a limit of detection of 0.16-0.24 ng/mL and recovery of 90-110%. This method is superior to other liquid-liquid extraction methods, as is simple, rapid, environmental friendly, and its phase separation needs no centrifugation. It also needs no disperser solvent and requires less organic solvent, and satisfies the criteria to be called as a green extraction. Therefore, this facile extraction method can be successfully applied in the determination of Sudan dyes in food samples.

Fe3O4/hydroxyapatite/graphene quantum dots as a novel nano-sorbent for preconcentration of copper residue in Thai food ingredients: Optimization of ultrasound-assisted magnetic solid phase extraction.

Fe3O4/hydroxyapatite/graphene quantum dots (Fe3O4/HAP/GQDs) nanocomposite was synthesized and used as a novel magnetic adsorbent. This nanocomposite was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and magnetization property. The Fe3O4/HAP/GQDs was applied to pre-concentrate copper residues in Thai food ingredients (so-called "Tom Yum Kung") prior to determination by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry. Based on ultrasound-assisted extraction optimization, various parameters affecting the magnetic solid-phase extraction, such as solution pH, amount of magnetic nanoparticles, adsorption and desorption time, and type of elution solvent and its concentration were evaluated. Under optimal conditions, the linear range was 0.05-1500ngmL-1 (R2>0.999), limit of detection was 0.58ngmL-1, and limit of quantification was 1.94ngmL-1. The precision, expressed as the relative standard deviation of the calibration curve slope (n=5), for intra-day and inter-day analyses was 0.87% and 4.47%, respectively. The recovery study of Cu for real samples was ranged between 83.5% and 104.8%. This approach gave the enrichment factor of 39.2, which guarantees trace analysis of Cu residues. Therefore, Fe3O4/HAP/GQDs can be a potential and suitable candidate for the pre-concentration and separation of Cu from food samples. It can easily be reused after treatment with deionized water.

Preconcentration and trace determination of copper (II) in Thai food recipes using Fe3O4@Chi-GQDs nanocomposites as a new magnetic adsorbent.

This study describes the preparation, characterization, and application of a new magnetic chitosan-graphene quantum dots (Fe3O4@Chi-GQDs) nanocomposite as an adsorbent for the preconcentration of Cu(II) in Thai food recipes or the so-called "Som Tam" (green papaya salad) prior to determination by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry. The spectroscopic and magnetic properties along with the morphology and thermal property were analyzed using FTIR, EDX, XRD, TGA, VSM, and TEM. Preconcentration optimizations including pH, dosage of adsorbent, adsorption-desorption time, concentration and volume of elution solvent, sample volume and enrichment factor, and reusing time were investigated. Good linearity was obtained ranging from 0.05 to 1500µgL-1 with correlation coefficient of 0.999. Limit of detection was 0.015µgL-1. Relative recoveries of 85.4-107.5% were satisfactorily obtained. This Fe3O4@Chi-GQDs has high potential to be used as preconcentration method and can be reused 7times with high extraction efficiency.

Using bio-dispersive solution of chitosan for green dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction of trace amounts of Cu(II) in edible oils prior to analysis by ICP-OES.

A green approach using chitosan solution as a novel bio-dispersive agent for the dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) of trace amounts of Cu(II) in edible oils is presented. An emulsion was formed by mixing the oil sample with 300µL of 0.25% (w/v) chitosan solution containing 200µL of 6molL-1 HCl. Deionized water was used to induce emulsion breaking without centrifugation. The centrifuged Cu(II) extract was collected and analyzed using an inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometer. The detection and quantitation limits were 2.1 and 6.8µgL-1, respectively. Trace amounts of Cu(II) in six edible oil samples were tested under optimum conditions for DLLME, with a recovery ranging from 90.3% to 109.3%. Therefore, the new dispersive agent in DLLME offers superior performance owing to the non-toxic nature of the solvent, short extraction time, high sensitivity, and easy operation.

Phytochemicals in Capsicum oleoresin from different varieties of hot chilli peppers with their antidiabetic and antioxidant activities due to some phenolic compounds.

Due to its wide use in nutritional therapy, a capsicum oleoresin extraction from hot chilli pepper was optimized using ultrasound assisted extraction. Under optimal conditions, a 0.1g sample in 10mL of a 20% water in methanol solution was extracted at 50°C for 20min to remove phytochemicals consisting of oleoresin, phenolics, carotenoids, flavonoids, capsaicinoids (pungency level), reducing sugars. Antioxidant and antidiabetic activities of the crude extracts from 14 chilli pepper varieties were examined. The antioxidant and antidiabetic activities of some phenolic compounds were also tested individually. The results showed that these chilli pepper samples are a rich source of phytochemicals with antioxidant and antidiabetic activities. High antioxidant activity of the extracts was evaluated using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl, N,N-dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine dihydrochloride, 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazolin-6-sulfonic acid) and ferric ion reducing antioxidant power assays. The crude extracts had a lower level of sugars induced by the inhibitory effect of α-amylase activity. Thus, their enzymatic inhibitory effect might have resulted from a synergism among the phytochemicals concerned. Therefore, a diet with this type of food may have beneficial health effects.

A novel extraction method for ß-carotene and other carotenoids in fruit juices using air-assisted, low-density solvent-based liquid-liquid microextraction and solidified floating organic droplets.

Green extraction using air-assisted, low-density solvent-based liquid-liquid microextraction and solidified floating organic droplets (AA-LDS-LLME-SFOD) prior to spectrophotometry was successfully applied for quantitation of carotenoids in fruit juices. Under optimal conditions, ß-carotene could be quantified with a linear response up to a concentration of 60 µg mL(-1). The procedure was performed in a microcentrifuge tube with 40 µL of 1-dodecanol as the extraction solvent and a 1.0 mL juice sample containing 8% NaCl under seven extraction cycles of air pumping by syringe. This method was validated based on linearity (0.2-30 µg mL(-1), R(2) 0.998), limit of detection (0.04 µg mL(-1)) and limit of quantification (0.13 µg mL(-1)). The precision, expressed as the relative standard deviation (RSD) of the calibration curve slope (n=12), for inter-day and intra-day analysis was 4.85% and 7.92%, respectively. Recovery of ß-carotene was in the range of 93.6-101.5%. The newly proposed method is simple, rapid and environmentally friendly, particularly as a useful screening test for food analysis.

An iodine supplementation of tomato fruits coated with an edible film of the iodide-doped chitosan.

In general, the risk of numerous thyroid cancers inevitably increases among people with iodine deficiencies. An iodide-doped chitosan (CT-I) solution was prepared for dipping tomatoes to coat the fresh surface with an edible film (1.5 µm), thereby providing iodine-rich fruits for daily intake. Characterisation of the thin film was conducted by FTIR and SEM. Stability of the CT-I film was studied via water immersion at various time intervals, and no residual iodide leached out due to intrinsic interactions between the cationic amino group of chitosan and iodide ions. Moreover, the iodide supplement exhibited no effect on the antioxidant activity of tomatoes. The iodine content in the film-coated tomato was determined by ICP-OES. The tomato coating with 1.5% (w/v) CT-I contained approximately 0.4 µg iodide per gram fresh weight. In addition, the freshness and storability of iodine-doped tomatoes were also maintained for shelf-life concerns.

Enzymatic changes in phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, cinnamic-4-hydroxylase, capsaicin synthase, and peroxidase activities in capsicum under drought stress.

Penylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), cinnamic-4-hydroxylase (C4H), capsaicin synthase (CS), and peroxidase (POD) are involved in the capsaicinoid biosynthesis pathway and may be altered in cultivars with different pungency levels. This study clarified the action of these enzymes under drought stress for hot Capsicum cultivars with low, medium,and high pungency levels. At the flowering stage, control plants were watered at field capacity, whereas drought-induced plants were subjected to gradual drought stress. Under drought stress, PAL, C4H, CS, and POD enzyme activities increased as compared to the non-drought-stressed plants. A novel discovery was that PAL was the critical enzyme in capsaicinoid biosynthesis under drought stress because its activities and capsaicinoid increased across the different pungency levels of hot pepper cultivars examined.