Electrospinning Induced Orientation of Protein Fibrils.

Amyloid-like fibrils are prepared from protein in the lab by controlled heat treatments, yet these must be further assembled to match the desirable mechanical and structural properties of biological fibers. Here, ß-lactoglobulin fibrils were incorporated into poly(ethylene oxide) fibers of 40-180 nm diameter by electrospinning. Protein fibrils presented as short segments dispersed within electrospun fibers, with no change in fibril diameter after electrospinning. Imaging analysis revealed fibrils were aligned within 20° relative to the fiber long axis, and alignment was further confirmed by polarized FTIR and anisotropic SAXS/WAXS scattering patterns. The elastic modulus of fibers increased with protein fibril content from 0.8 to 2 GPa, which is superior to reported values of silk, collagen, and gelatin. The present setup allows for manufacture of large quantities of polymeric fibers containing protein fibrils with varied diameter and mechanical strength, endowing great potential for a variety of applications.

Structured emulsions as butter substitutes: effects on physicochemical and sensory attributes of shortbread cookies.

BACKGROUND: Reformulation of foods products to reduce total and saturated fats while maintaining acceptable structure, texture and mouthfeel poses an important challenge to the food industry. In this work, the use of structured emulsions (fibre-induced oil-in-water biphasic systems with reduced total and saturated fats) is proposed to replace butter in shortbread cookies. RESULTS: Use of structured emulsions resulted in softer dough that was still workable using a traditional process. Shortbread cookies containing structured emulsions were harder and paler than the butter control but had a significantly reduced saturated fat content. They also received promising scores in the sensory analysis in terms of texture and overall acceptability, despite the butter product still being the preferred sample. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicated that structured emulsions represent a good solution to produce nutritionally improved shortbreads. Optimization of the structured emulsion formulation can provide further improvement of the nutritional, sensory and physicochemical properties of shortbread cookies. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

The effects of whey protein fibrils on the linear and non-linear rheological properties of a gluten-free dough.

The increasing awareness of the celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder caused by the consumption of products containing gluten, has led to a growing interest in the development of gluten-free bakery products. In this study, whey protein fibrils (WPFs) were incorporated to mimic the fibrous network of gluten. The rheological properties and microstructure of the developed gluten-free doughs were evaluated and compared with gluten doughs. Protein fibrils were prepared by heating a whey protein isolate (WPI) solution at 80°C in an acidic environment with low salt concentration, and then the fibril lengths were adjusted by leveling up the solution pH to 3.5 and 7. The dimensions of the fibrils were measured by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Rice and potato starches were mixed with fibrils, WPI, gluten, or without protein, to form different doughs for further investigation. Shear tests, including stress sweep, frequency sweep, and creep recovery, were performed to study the viscoelastic properties of doughs under small or large deformation. The strain-hardening properties of doughs under biaxial extension were studied by the lubricated squeezing flow method. The microstructure of the doughs was characterized by cryo-scanning electron microscopy (cryo-SEM). Compared with doughs prepared with WPI and no proteins, doughs incorporating fibrils showed comparable linear viscoelasticity to gluten dough tested with stress sweep, frequency sweep, and creep recovery in the linear viscoelastic region. More differences between the protein fibril doughs were revealed in the rheological properties in the non-linear region. Creep recovery parameters, such as compliance, elastic moduli during the creep, and recovery stages of gluten dough, were like those of WPF pH7 dough, but significantly different from those of the WPF pH3.5 dough. Strain-hardening properties were found in the WPF pH7 dough, although not in WPF pH3.5 dough. Microstructural characterization showed that both fibrils prepared with the different conditions formed a continuous protein phase for the improvement of dough cohesiveness, but the structure of the phase was different between the two fibrils. To summarize, whey protein fibril at pH 7 seemed to have the potential of being used as an ingredient with similar functions to gluten in gluten-free bakery products.

Ready to eat shelf-stable brown rice in pouches: effect of moisture content on product's quality and stability.

Despite several nutritional benefits of brown rice (BR) its consumption remains limited compared to white rice. Two of the major barriers to its consumption are long cooking time and limited shelf life. However, those two hurdles can be overcome through the development of shelf-stable BR pouches to create new ready-to-eat (RTE) products, a food category that is gaining important market shares. Nevertheless, scarce information is available on the production and shelf-life stability of ready-to-eat BR products. The first objective of this study was the determination of the optimal moisture range to fully cook BR. The second objective was to determine the effect of moisture content and storage time on two fundamental parameters for consumer's acceptance of rice: color and texture. Three RTE BR pouches with moisture contents of 54%, 57% and 60% were produced and texture and color were evaluated after 1 year of storage. Significant changes in hardness and stickiness were reported during long-term storage. Moisture content negatively affected hardness and positively affected stickiness. Furthermore, storage time and moisture showed a significant effect on rice color. The present results provide information that will be useful to design new RTE meals to promote brown rice consumption.

Limited hydrolysis and conjugation of zein with chitosan oligosaccharide by enzymatic reaction to improve functional properties.

In order to improve its aqueous solubility and emulsifying function, zein was partially hydrolyzed by trypsin and conjugated to chitosan oligosaccharide lactate by transglutaminase. Hydrolysis and covalent linkage to chitosan oligosaccharide was confirmed by free amine content, gel electrophoresis, and infrared spectroscopy. Enzymatic glycosylation was optimized at pH 6, 44 °C, and 4 h to bind approximately 95% of the free amines in the hydrolysates to chitosan oligosaccharide. Hydrolysis and conjugation increased solubility of zein by 47.60% and 72.93%. Hydrolysis and conjugation also decreased surface hydrophobicity by more than 20% and more than doubled emulsifying activity index, emulsion stability index, and foaming capacity. This enzymatic modification has potential to be applied to improve functional properties of other prolamins.

Incorporation of Plasticizers and Co-proteins in Zein Electrospun Fibers.

As a means to alter the physical properties of electrospun zein fibers, plasticizers (glycerol, lactic acid, and oleic acid) or co-proteins (casein, whey protein, rice protein) were mixed with zein using the solvents acetic acid or aqueous ethanol with or without sodium hydroxide. Incorporating plasticizers or co-proteins had a negligible impact on solution viscosity, solution surface tension, and fiber formation, although electron microscopy of fiber mats showed an increase in bead formation with added co-proteins. Gel electrophoresis identified casein and whey protein in spun mats. Infrared spectra demonstrated the inclusion of plasticizers in fiber mats. Glycerol, lactic acid, and oleic acid reduced the glass transition temperature of bulk fibers. Nanoindentation tests of individual fibers found reduced Young's moduli with added lactic or oleic acids but increased moduli with added casein. Thus, electrospinning zein with food-grade plasticizers or proteins physically modifies fibers, yet incorporating significant protein quantities remains a challenge.

Rheology, microstructure and phase behavior of potato starch-protein fibril mixed gel.

Effects of adding whey protein fibrils to gels of potato starch with 8 % solids content were determined by rheology, microscopy, and calorimetry. Adding fibrils to starch at 50 % content (w/w) increased starch gelatinization temperature by 1.5 °C but decreased associated enthalpy. Fibril addition consistently reduced gel viscosity. Storage modulus (G') of gels increased with fibril content when prepared at pH3.5 but not at pH6.8. Fibrils were dispersed within imaged gels at pH3.5 for contents below 50 %, while separated phases were observed within pH3.5 gels for 50 % fibril content and within pH6.8 gels for all fibril contents. Dilution of gels led to sedimentation of predominantly starch, and both starch and protein content of sediment increased with overall fibril content. Results indicated that associative interactions between fibrils and starch contributed to synergistic increases in gel elasticity at low pH but not at neutral pH conditions under which starch and protein were poorly compatible.