Application of Mid-Infrared Portable Spectrometer for the Rapid Determination of Trans-Fatty Acid Content in Lipid Extracts of Snack and Bakery Products.

In 2015, the US Food and Drug Administration passed a ban on the "generally recognized as safe" status of partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), and in June 2018, PHOs were prohibited from being used. Our objective was to develop a predictive model to quantify trans-fat concentrations in bakery and snacks products using a portable mid-infrared (MIR) spectrometer. The approach was tested using 24 calibration standards (consisting of trielaidin in triolein and tripalmitin) and 87 bakery and snack products ranging from ND to 65% trans-fat. The fat was extracted by grinding products into powders and extracting the fat using petroleum ether. Gas Chromatography (AOCS Cd 14c-94) was used to determine the fatty acid profile and trans-fat content. Spectra were acquired by directly placing the fat (200 µL) onto the heated (65 ± 1°C) 5-reflection ZnSe crystal of a portable MIR spectrometer. Partial least squares regression (PLSR) models were developed using the calibration standards and extracted fats spectra targeting the signal of the C-H out-of-plane deformation band at 966 cm-1. Best model performances were obtained using the spectra of the extracted fat from bakery and snack products with the standard error of prediction of 0.5 g of trans-fats per 100 g of fat. We found that 25% of products labeled as zero trans-fat/serving did not comply with the maximum tolerance levels based on GC-FAME analysis. Portable FTIR devices operating in attenuated total reflection (ATR) mode can provide the food industry and government food inspectors with rapid, accurate, and high throughput measurements for routine screening to facilitate regulatory compliance.

Lifeform indicators reveal large-scale shifts in plankton across the North-West European shelf.

Increasing direct human pressures on the marine environment, coupled with climate-driven changes, is a concern to marine ecosystems globally. This requires the development and monitoring of ecosystem indicators for effective management and adaptation planning. Plankton lifeforms (broad functional groups) are sensitive indicators of marine environmental change and can provide a simplified view of plankton biodiversity, building an understanding of change in lower trophic levels. Here, we visualize regional-scale multi-decadal trends in six key plankton lifeforms as well as their correlative relationships with sea surface temperature (SST). For the first time, we collate trends across multiple disparate surveys, comparing the spatially and temporally extensive Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) survey (offshore) with multiple long-term fixed station-based time-series (inshore) from around the UK coastline. These analyses of plankton lifeforms showed profound long-term changes, which were coherent across large spatial scales. For example, 'diatom' and 'meroplankton' lifeforms showed strong alignment between surveys and coherent regional-scale trends, with the 1998-2017 decadal average abundance of meroplankton being 2.3 times that of 1958-1967 for CPR samples in the North Sea. This major, shelf-wide increase in meroplankton correlated with increasing SSTs, and contrasted with a general decrease in holoplankton (dominated by small copepods), indicating a changing balance of benthic and pelagic fauna. Likewise, inshore-offshore gradients in dinoflagellate trends, with contemporary increases inshore contrasting with multi-decadal decreases offshore (approx. 75% lower decadal mean abundance), urgently require the identification of causal mechanisms. Our lifeform approach allows the collation of many different data types and time-series across the NW European shelf, providing a crucial evidence base for informing ecosystem-based management, and the development of regional adaptation plans.