Investigating the effects of chitosan/ tragacanth gum/ polyvinyl alcohol composite coating incorporated with cinnamon essential oil nanoemulsion on safety and quality features of chicken breast fillets during storage in the refrigerator.

The present study investigated the effects of composite coatings made of chitosan (CS), tragacanth gum (TG), and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) containing cinnamon essential oil (CEO) on the shelf-life of refrigerated chicken breast fillets. The samples were treated with different coating dispersions, and coded as: T1 (distilled water as control), T2 (blank composite coating), and T3 (composite coating containing CEO). Results showed that incorporating CEO into CS/TG/PVA coatings could significantly increase the quality of chicken fillets. The obtained results showed that after 21 days, the total microbial population of lactic acid bacteria (LAB), psychrotrophic and mesophilic bacteria in T3 samples was less than T1 and T2 samples. In addition, the highest antioxidant activity (48.04 %) and total phenolic content (TPC) values (2.458 mg gallic acid /g), the best sensory characteristics and the lowest pH (5.73), total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) (21.89 mg N/100 g), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) (1.678 mg malondialdehyde equivalent/kg) and percentage of cooking loss (30 %) were related to T3. Results disclosed that this composite coating is a promising technology to improve the shelf life of chicken fillets during storage.

Fabrication, characterization and antimicrobial activity of chitosan/tragacanth gum/polyvinyl alcohol composite films incorporated with cinnamon essential oil nanoemulsion.

The aim of this investigation was to prepare and characterize active composite films made of chitosan (CS), tragacanth gum (TG), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and loaded with different concentrations of cinnamon essential oil (CEO) nanoemulsion (CEO, 2 and 4 % v/v). For this purpose, the amount of CS was fixed and the ratio of TG to PVA (90:10, 80:20, 70:30, and 60:40) was considered variable. The physical (thickness and opacity), mechanical, antibacterial and water-resistance properties of the composite films were evaluated. According to the microbial tests, the optimal sample was determined and evaluated with several analytical instruments. CEO loading increased the thickness and EAB of composite films, while decreasing light transmission, tensile strength, and water vapor permeability. All the films containing CEO nanoemulsion had antimicrobial properties, but this activity was higher against Gram-positive bacteria (Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus) than Gram-negative types (Escherichia coli (O157:H7) and Salmonella typhimurium). According to the results of attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), the interaction between the components of the composite film was confirmed. It can be concluded that the CEO nanoemulsion can be incorporated in CS/TG/PVA composite films and successfully used as active and environmentally friendly packaging.

Exploring fennel (Foeniculum vulgare): Composition, functional properties, potential health benefits, and safety.

Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill), a member of the Apiaceae family (Umbelliferaceae), is a hardy and perennial herb, with grooved stems, intermittent leaves, petiole with sheath, usually bisexual flower and yellow umbrella. Although fennel is a typical aromatic plant generally considered native to the Mediterranean shores, it has become widespread in many regions of the world and has long been used as a medicinal and culinary herb. The aim of this review is to collect recent information from the literature on the chemical composition, functional properties and toxicology of fennel. Collected data show the efficacy of this plant in various in vitro and in vivo pharmacological studies including antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimutagenic, antinociceptive, hepatoprotective, bronchodilatory, and memory enhancing activities. It has also been shown to be effective on infantile colic, dysmenorrhea, polycystic ovarian syndrome and milk production. This review also aims to identify gaps in the literature that require to be filled by future research.

Release of bioactive compounds from delivery systems by stimuli-responsive approaches; triggering factors, mechanisms, and applications.

Recent advances in emerging nanocarriers and stimuli-responsive (SR) delivery systems have brought about a revolution in the food and pharmaceutical industries. SR carriers are able to release the encapsulated bioactive compounds (bioactives) upon an external trigger. The potential of releasing the loaded bioactives in site-specific is of great importance for the pharmaceutical industry and medicine that can deliver the cargo in an appropriate condition. For the food industry, release of encapsulated bioactives is considerably important in processing or storage of food products and can be used in their formulation or packaging. There are various stimuli to control the favorite release of bioactives. In this review, we will shed light on the effect of different stimuli such as temperature, humidity, pH, light, enzymatic hydrolysis, redox, and also multiple stimuli on the release of encapsulated cargo and their potential applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries. An overview of cargo release mechanisms is also discussed. Furthermore, various alternatives to manipulate the controlled release of bioactives from carriers and the perspective of more progress in these SR carriers are highlighted.

Polyethersulfone membrane embedded with amine functionalized microcrystalline cellulose.

In this investigation, microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) was functionalized with metformin HCl using (3-chloropropyl)triethixysilane (CPTES) as a coupling agent. Polyethersulfone (PES) membranes were incorporated with different concentrations of modified MCC (MMCC) to enhance its affinity for heavy metals during filtration of aqueous solutions. The composite membranes were characterized via fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) method, porosity and contact angle measurements and mechanical analysis. The presence of MMCC in the host matrix was confirmed by FTIR. Although composites decomposed at lower temperatures, their thermal stability was sufficient to meet their performance requirements. DSC showed enhanced glass transition temperature (Tg) due to the interfacial interactions between membrane constituents which restrict the mobility of polymer chains. Microscopic imaging revealed higher surface roughness of composites compared to neat PES. Inclusion of MMCC increased the porosity and hydrophilicity of the membrane which consequently, higher permeability can be achieved.

Amine functionalization of microcrystalline cellulose assisted by (3-chloropropyl)triethoxysilane.

To improve the heavy metal adsorption of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), two successive grafting reactions of silylation by (3-chloropropyl)triethoxysilane (CPTES) and amine-functionalization with metformin HCl were performed and the modified MCC from the first and second steps were denoted as MMCC-1 and MMCC-2, respectively. MMCCs were characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and compared to MCC. The presence of the amine group on the MMCC-2 surface was confirmed by FT-IR analysis. According to the XRD results, the crystallinity index (CI) of MMCC-1 increased very slightly compared to that of MCC that can be attributed to the partial hydrolysis of amorphous parts because of acidic conditions used for MCC silylation but CI of MMCC-2 decreased due to the high temperature and long time in the 2nd step of modification. TGA revealed the lower thermal stability of MMCC-2 than the corresponding MCC.

Biodegradation and ecotoxicological impact of cellulose nanocomposites in municipal solid waste composting.

Biodegradable nanocomposites were prepared from polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and cellulose nanofiber (CNF) by using liquid nitrogen, freeze drying and hot press techniques. The effect of CNF content on the biodegradability of the films was investigated by visual observation, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), weight loss, CO2 evolution, differential scanning calorimetry, measuring the amount of mineralized carbon of the specimens buried in municipal solid waste. Ecotoxicity was evaluated by plants growth tests with cress and spinach. The results confirmed that the weight loss of nanocomposites was lower than that of neat PVA because of the zigzag pathways of microorganisms in the CNF presence. The SEM analysis showed extensive surface roughness and cracks for all samples, indicating the initiation of biodegradation. The CO2 evolution decreased with increasing CNF content from 0% to 10% and then, increased with further increase in the filler content (up to 30 wt%). The crystallinity of the PVA and its nanocomposites increased as a function of time because of the amorphous parts degradation. Preliminary results of the ecotoxicological test revealed that all the nanocomposites and neat PVA did not generate any negative effects on germination or development of the studied vegetal species.

Thermomechanical and morphological properties of nanocomposite films from wheat gluten matrix and cellulose nanofibrils.

The aim of this investigation was the optimization of preparing gluten film containing cellulose nanofibrils (CNF). An optimization procedure using central composite design (CCD) with three factors (CNF, glycerol, and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) concentrations) was used in order to investigate the effect of these parameters on the mechanical (tensile strength--TS, elongation at break--ε(b)) and thermal properties of gluten films and to establish a formulation to depict the relationship between the mentioned factors and mechanical properties. Through regression analysis, it was found that TS and ε(b) well fitted by quadratic polynomial equations (R² = 0.99 and 0.98, respectively) and the glycerol concentration was the most significant factor influencing them. The optimization was based on maximizing TS and ε(b). The optimum conditions determined using response surface methodology (RSM) were defined as: CNF concentration, 11.129 g/100 g, glycerol concentration, 35.440 g/100 g and SDS concentration, 6.259 g/100 g. The predicted responses for these film preparation conditions were a TS of 3.630 MPa and ε(b) of 86.033%. The verification experiments were conducted under optimal conditions to compare predicted and actual values of dependent variables. This experiment indicated that both predicted and actual values (TS of 3.721 MPa and ε(b) of 88.935%) almost coincide each other and therefore the estimated models were reasonable and of high accuracy to predict dependent variables values. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images showed non-agglomerated and well dispersed CNF in the gluten matrix. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results indicated that there is not any significant difference (P > 0.05) between the glass transition temperature (T(g)) of optimum nanocomposite (-29.12 °C) and control film (-29.64 °C) and their thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) thermograms showed similar degradation behavior.

Optimization of gelatin extraction from chicken deboner residue using RSM method.

This study aims to investigate the optimization of gelatin extraction from chicken deboner residue. An optimization procedure using a central composite design with three factors (HCl concentration, extraction temperature, and extraction time) was used in order to investigate the effects of these parameters on extraction yield, g-f, viscosity, and lightness. It was found that the optimum conditions for producing gelatin using response surface methodology (RSM) included an acid concentration of 6.73% and an extraction temperature of 86.8 °C for 1.95 h. The predicted responses for these extraction conditions included a yield of 10.2%, a g-f of 526 g, a viscosity of 5.85 cP, and a lightness of 70.0. Verification experiments were conducted under optimal conditions to compare predicted and actual values of the dependent variables. Both actual and predicted values were found to nearly coincide, confirming that the estimation models were capable of reasonably and accurately predicting the dependent variables.