Characterisation by drop tensiometry and by ellipsometry of the adsorption layer formed at the air/champagne wine interface.

A foam ring composed of small bubbles on the surface of a champagne glass is one of its hallmarks. The equilibrium state of that ring is linked with the rate of formation and of disappearance of bubbles. The stability of bubbles is usually ascribed to the occurrence and to the properties of an adsorption layer formed at the gas/liquid interface. Our goal is to characterise such an adsorption layer at the gas/wine interface in order to understand its role in bubble stability. Alcohol in wine lowers the surface tension to 49 mN/m. The adsorption of other molecules may cause a further decrease of 2 mN/m. Such a situation makes the study of adsorption by surface tension measurement inaccurate. To overcome this problem, we have diluted the wine four times with water before its surface tension measurement by pendant drop shape analysis. In these conditions, ethanol lowers the surface tension to 64 mN/m and the adsorption of other molecules of the wine can be monitored over 6-8 mN/m. The usual behaviour of such a diluted wine is a lowering of the surface tension during at least 20 min after drop formation. Since the role of macromolecules on the foaming properties of wine had been previously observed, we have chosen to evaluate the effect of this fraction of the wine molecules on its surface properties. Thus, wines were ultrafiltrated on a membrane with a 10000 molecular mass cut-off. The ultrafiltrate (UF) does not show any decrease of its surface tension over a 20-min period while the ultraconcentrate (UC) has a kinetics similar to that of unfiltered wine. Mixtures of UF and UC have behaviours intermediate between those of these products. A technological treatment of the wine with bentonite, believed to lower the content of macromolecules, yields a wine similar to UF. The effect of ultrafiltration was also analysed by spectroscopic ellipsometry. UF has a spectrum similar to that of a water/alcohol mixture with the same ethanol content and its ellipticity is stable during at least 20 min. On the contrary, wine or UC show spectra with the features of an adsorption layer and those characteristics increase during more than 20 min. Two varieties of vine were compared: 'Chardonnay' and 'Pinot noir'. The former is known to have better foaming properties than the latter. Its surface properties measured in this study are also more pronounced than those of Pinot noir. However, the representation of the dilational modulus against the surface pressure (which, in some instances, may be a mathematical transformation of the state equation) puts all the samples (wines, UF and UC of each) on the same master curve, a fact in favour of a common nature for all the adsorption layers. It can be concluded that surface properties of champagne wines are mostly determined by ethanol and by macromolecules with a molecular mass larger than 10000. Moreover, the adsorption layers seem to have the same nature, irrespective of the vine variety and of the concentration ratio of the wine.

Liquid chromatographic fractionation of small peptides from wine.

Peptides are difficult to isolate from wine because they are present in a complex mixture together with non-peptidic compounds. A method for the isolation, separation and purity assessing of small peptides is proposed. Small peptides (Mr<3000) were isolated from wine by hollow fibre ultrafiltration followed by column chromatography using the gel matrix Sephadex LH20. Fractions obtained by gel filtration on Sephadex LH20 were subjected to HPLC on a porous graphitic carbon column in order to isolate small peptides. Peak purity was then analysed by capillary electrophoresis.

Toluene diisocyanate-induced conformational changes of serum albumin: a study on repeated inhalations in guinea-pigs.

High responder lines of Hartley guinea-pigs were sensitized by repeated inhalations of toluene diisocyanate (TDI). After 3 weeks, we demonstrated a degree of TDI substitution of the serum-albumin-enriched fraction (AEF) and we ascertained the sensitization of the most exposed animals using PCA methodology. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), used to investigate conformational changes in AEF, highlighted the structural modifications of the native protein conformation. Such crucial changes may support, at least in part, the relationship between TDI exposure and triggering of hypersensitivity reactions.

Transport of glutamate in Oenococcus oeni 8403.

The transport of L-glutamate in Oenococcus oeni 8403 is energy dependent. It could be activated either by carbohydrate or arginine metabolism, and it was shown to be stimulated by L-malic acid at low pH values. Transport was optimal at pH 7.0. The apparent affinity constants for transport (KT) was 0.98 microM at pH 7.0. L-glutamate uptake was inhibited by glutamine, asparagine and L-aspartate.

Formation of flavor components by the reaction of amino acid and carbonyl compounds in mild conditions.

This work describe products of reactions between four alpha-dicarbonyl compounds (diacetyl, pentan-2,3-dione, glyoxal, and methylglyoxal) or two alpha-hydroxy ketones, (acetoine and acetol) and amino acids present in wines. The results shows the formation of odorous products or strong-smelling additives resulting from the Maillard and Strecker reaction in a primarily aqueous medium, at low temperature and low pH ( approximately pH 3.5) of the wine. GC/FID, GC/FPD, GC/NPD and GC/MS techniques were used. The olfactive characteristics of the products are described. In the presence of sulfur amino acids and in particular cysteine, many products were formed with a heterocycle production such as pyrazines and methylpyrazines, methylthiazoles, acetylthiazoles, acetylthiazolines, acetylthiazolidines, trimethyloxazole, and dimethylethyloxazoles. These various compounds present odors of sulfur, cornlike, pungent, nut, popcorn, roasted hazelnut, toasted, roasted, and ripe fruits. The chemical conditions of the model reactions are specified. The influence of temperature and pH on the reactions in the presence of cysteine were also studied.

Immunodetection of proteins from grapes and yeast in a white wine.

The objective of this study was to analyze the origin of proteins of a Chardonnay wine. Three various polyclonal antibodies raised against must, yeast, and bacteria proteins were produced. For microorganisms, only the secreted macromolecules were used. To this end, yeast and bacteria were cultured in a model medium under conditions close to those of winemaking. Results obtained using these specific antibodies indicate that most of the wine proteins came from grapes and many of them were glycoproteins. Some proteins of this Chardonnay wine came from the yeast; they were released during the alcoholic fermentation and consisted of high molecular weight mannoproteins. In contrast, no bacteria proteins were detected in this Chardonnay wine.

Isolation of isolectins from Vitis vinifera L. Cv. Chardonnay grape berries.

A lectin fraction from Chardonnay grape juice has been isolated by affinity chromatography on a column of p-aminophenyl beta-D-glucoside-derivatized agarose. The lectin fractions agglutinate rabbit and human erythrocytes without serological specificity. None of the usual monosaccharides, glycosides, or glycoproteins inhibit the hemagglutinating activity. Erythroagglutination is only inhibited by nitrophenyl glycosides, p-nitrophenyl beta-D-glucoside being the strongest inhibitor. In SDS-PAGE in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol and gel filtration HPLC, the lectin fraction gave a single band or peak corresponding to M(r) 13.2-11.9 kDa, thus indicating it to be a monomer. Three bands were observed by isoelectric focusing with pI values of 4.1, 4. 4, and 4.9. The isolectins seem to be glycoproteins since they are bound on a concanavalin A-Sepharose column.

A study into the role of L-aspartic acid on the metabolism of L-malic acid and D-glucose by Oenococcus oeni.

AIMS: The purpose of this work was to study the effect of L-aspartic acid concentration on bacterial growth, D-glucose fermentation and L-malic acid consumption of Oenococcus oeni NCFB 1707. METHODS AND RESULTS: Bacterial cultures were performed in synthetic media. Bacterial growth, D-glucose fermentation and L-malic acid consumption were reduced when L-aspartic acid concentration became excessive. This inhibitory effect of high concentrations of L-aspartic acid on bacterial growth was also observed with several Oenococcus oeni strains, except O. oeni BL01. The L-aspartic acid inhibitory effect on bacterial growth could be reduced by increasing the concentration of L-glutamic acid. L-glutamic acid transport was found to be competitively inhibited by L-aspartic acid. In addition, an excessive amount of L-aspartic acid modified D-glucose metabolism, with an overproduction of acetic acid and reduced ethanol production. CONCLUSION: Since L-glutamic acid is an essential amino acid for the bacterial strain used, the L-aspartic acid inhibitory effect on bacterial growth could be linked to its involvement in an antagonistic interaction with L-glutamic acid. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Such antagonistic interactions between amino acids in O. oeni strains could be another explanation for the difficulties of inducing malolactic fermentation in wines.