Biotransformation and bioconversion of phenolic compounds obtainment: an overview

Phenolic compounds have recently been recognized for their influence on human metabolism, acting in the prevention of some chronic diseases as well as proving to be important antioxidants in food. Nevertheless, the extraction and concentration processes are usually carried out by organic solvent extraction from natural sources and can generate some drawbacks like phenolic compound degradation, lengthy process times and low yields. As a solution, some eco-friendly technologies, including solid-state fermentation (SSF) or enzymatic-assisted reaction, have been proposed as alternative processes. This article reviews the extraction of phenolic compounds from agro-industrial co-products by solid-state fermentation, even as friendly enzyme-assisted extractions. It also discusses the characteristics of each bioprocess system and the variables that affect product formation, as well as the range of substrates, microorganisms and enzymes that can be useful for the production of bioactive phenolic compounds.     

From flavors and pharmaceuticals to advanced biofuels: Production of isoprenoids in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Isoprenoids denote the largest group of chemicals in the plant kingdom and are employed for a wide range of applications in the food and pharmaceutical industry. In recent years, isoprenoids have additionally been recognized as suitable replacements for petroleum-derived fuels and could thus promote the transition towards a more sustainable society. To realize the biofuel potential of isoprenoids, a very efficient production system is required. While complex chemical structures as well as the low abundance in nature demonstrate the shortcomings of chemical synthesis and plant extraction, isoprenoids can be produced by genetically engineered microorganisms from renewable carbon sources. In this article, we summarize the development of isoprenoid applications from flavors and pharmaceuticals to advanced biofuels and review the strategies to design microbial cell factories, focusing on Saccharomyces cerevisiae for the production of these compounds. While the high complexity of biosynthetic pathways and the toxicity of certain isoprenoids still denote challenges that need to be addressed, metabolic engineering has enabled large-scale production of several terpenoids and thus, the utilization of these compounds is likely to expand in the future.     

Plant cell culture technology in the cosmetics and food industries: current state and future trends

The production of drugs, cosmetics, and food which are derived from plant cell and tissue cultures has a long tradition. The emerging trend of manufacturing cosmetics and food products in a natural and sustainable manner has brought a new wave in plant cell culture technology over the past 10 years. More than 50 products based on extracts from plant cell cultures have made their way into the cosmetics industry during this time, whereby the majority is produced with plant cell suspension cultures. In addition, the first plant cell culture-based food supplement ingredients, such as Echigena Plus and Teoside 10, are now produced at production scale. In this mini review, we discuss the reasons for and the characteristics as well as the challenges of plant cell culture-based productions for the cosmetics and food industries. It focuses on the current state of the art in this field. In addition, two examples of the latest developments in plant cell culture-based food production are presented, that is, superfood which boosts health and food that can be produced in the lab or at home.

     

Tailoring of microbes for the production of high value plant-derived compounds: From pathway engineering to fermentative production

Plant natural products have been an attracting platform for the isolation of various active drugs and other bioactives. However large-scale extraction of these compounds is affected by the difficulty in mass cultivation of these plants and absence of strategies for successful extraction. Even though, synthesis by chemical method is an alternative method; it is less efficient as their chemical structure is highly complex which involve enantio-selectivity. Thus an alternate bio-system for heterologous production of plant natural products using microbes has emerged. Advent of various omics, synthetic and metabolic engineering strategies revolutionised the field of heterologous plant metabolite production. In this context, various engineering methods taken to synthesise plant natural products are described with an additional focus to fermentation strategies.     

Application of Supercritical Anti-Solvent Technologies for the Synthesis of Delivery Systems of Bioactive Food Components

To develop edible delivery systems suitable for food applications, regulations require that solvents and ingredients are either generally recognized as safe or listed by the Food and Drug Administration as processing aids. In this work, we studied a food grade polymer-corn zein, a category of alcohol-soluble proteins, as the carrier material for microencapsulating bioactives. Zein is insoluble in aqueous solutions; zein-based delivery systems may thus maintain the integrity in aqueous food products during processing and storage. Three alcohols, i.e., ethanol, methanol, and isopropanol, with an appropriate amount of water were used to dissolve zein. A supercritical anti-solvent process was applied to synthesize micro- and nanoparticles of zein for edible delivery systems of bioactive compounds. We studied critical variables during the particle formation: polymer concentration, CO₂ flow rate, and co-solvent chemistry. Particles were produced only when mass transfer was fast enough that the co-solvent in the atomized droplets could be extracted by the reservoir CO₂ and polymers could nucleate and grow into particles. Manipulation of the above variables enabled the production of micro- and nanoparticles, which can be used as bases for microencapsulating bioactives. Our results demonstrated promising applications of the supercritical anti-solvent technology to synthesize food grade delivery systems of bioactive food ingredients that can enhance the healthfulness, safety, and quality of food products.     

A Comparative Analysis of the ‘Green’ Techniques Applied for Polyphenols Extraction from Bioresources

From all the valuable biomass extractives, polyphenols are a widespread group of secondary metabolites found in all plants, representing the most desirable phytochemicals due to their potential to be used as additives in food industry, cosmetics, medicine, and others fields. At present, there is an increased interest to recover them from plant of spontaneous flora, cultivated plant, and wastes resulted in agricultural and food industry. That is why many efforts have been made to provide a highly sensitive, efficiently, and eco‐friendly methods, for the extraction of polyphenols, according to the green chemistry and sustainable development concepts. Many extraction procedures are known with advantages and disadvantages. From these reasons, the aim of this article is to provide a comparative analysis regarding technical and economical aspects related to the most innovative extraction techniques studied in the last time: microwave‐assisted extraction (MAE), supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), and ultrasound‐assisted extraction (UAE).     

Encapsulation systems for the delivery of hydrophilic nutraceuticals: Food application

Increased health risk associated with the sedentary life style is forcing the food manufacturers to look for food products with specific or general health benefits e.g. beverages enriched with nutraceuticals like catechin, curcumin rutin. Compounds like polyphenols, flavonoids, vitamins are the good choice of bioactive compounds that can be used to fortify the food products to enhance their functionality. However due to low stability and bioavailability of these bioactives (both hydrophobic and hydrophilic) within the heterogeneous food microstructure and in the Gastro Intestinal Tract (GIT), it becomes extremely difficult to pass on the real health benefits to the consumers.Recent developments in the application of nano-delivery systems for food product development is proving to be a game changer which has raised the expectations of the researchers, food manufacturers and consumers regarding possibility of enhancing the functionality of bioactives within the fortified food products. In this direction, nano/micro delivery systems using lipids, surfactants and other materials (carbohydrates, polymers, complexes, protein) have been fabricated to stabilize and enhance the biological activity of the bioactive compounds.In the present review, current status of the various delivery systems that are used for the delivery of hydrophilic bioactives and future prospects for using other delivery systems that have been not completely explored for the delivery of hydrophilic bioactives e.g. niosomes; bilosomes, cubosomes are discussed.     

Waste biotech

US market for environmental biotech products for waste treatment worth $261.3 M by 2013 Marine pharmacognosy Recent patents related to biowaste and bioactive compounds Project profile: Concentration and separation of bioactives in food science Microbial-based motor fuels Dairy fermentation, cell factories and bioactive peptides Earliest genetic material: Waste from the stars? Marine bacteria use carbon dioxide     

Devil's Claw to Suppress Appetite—Ghrelin Receptor Modulation Potential of a Harpagophytum procumbens Root Extract

Ghrelin is a stomach-derived peptide that has been identified as the only circulating hunger hormone that exerts a potent orexigenic effect via activation of its receptor, the growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHS-R1a). Hence, the ghrelinergic system represents a promising target to treat obesity and obesity-related diseases. In this study we analysed the GHS-R1a receptor activating potential of Harpagophytum procumbens, popularly known as Devil''s Claw, and its effect on food intake in vivo. H. procumbens is an important traditional medicinal plant from Southern Africa with potent anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. This plant has been also used as an appetite modulator but most evidences are anecdotal and to our knowledge, no clear scientific studies relating to appetite modulation have been done to this date. The ghrelin receptor activation potential of an extract derived from the dried tuberous roots of H. procumbens was analysed by calcium mobilization and receptor internalization assays in human embryonic kidney cells (Hek) stably expressing the GHS-R1a receptor. Food intake was investigated in male C57BL/6 mice following intraperitoneal administration of H. procumbens root extract in ad libitum and food restricted conditions. Exposure to H. procumbens extract demonstrated a significant increased cellular calcium influx but did not induce subsequent GHS-R1a receptor internalization, which is a characteristic for full receptor activation. A significant anorexigenic effect was observed in male C57BL/6 mice following peripheral administration of H. procumbens extract. We conclude that H. procumbens root extract is a potential novel source for potent anti-obesity bioactives. These results reinforce the promising potential of natural bioactives to be developed into functional foods with weight-loss and weight maintenance benefits.     

Cell-based models to test the effects of milk-derived bioactives

The life science industries have a strong interest in screening for novel bioactives in complex mixtures like milk and dairy products. Food bioactives are not only important for public health in general, but also have potential therapeutic applications for the treatment of a number of diseases. To identify these novel bioactives, establishment of robust screening assays is essential. The use of in vitro cell-based models for screening and testing have the advantage that several concentrations of mixtures or specific compounds can be assayed at the same time in cells from specific tissues. Primary cell cultures from target organs or established cell lines can be used to identify the most sensitive cells. In addition, a large number of transfected cell lines with very specific sensitivities have been developed. Different endpoints inherent to basal or more sophisticated cellular functions can be investigated, such as cell viability, apoptosis, migration, intracellular signalling, regulation of gene expression, morphology and metabolic alterations. The gastrointestinal tract is an obvious target for bioactive molecules delivered through milk and dairy products, because it lies at the interface between dietary components in the lumen and the internal processes of the host. Identification of bioactive factors that affects proliferation or migration of epithelial cells may have potential applications in promoting gastrointestinal health in both humans and animals. The mammary gland is another target organ of considerable interest since it has been estimated that up to 50% of all newly diagnosed breast cancers may be related to dietary factors. A large number of gastrointestinal and mammary epithelial cell lines are commercially available, but in order to study some cellular functions, primary cultures of freshly isolated cells are often preferred, as established cell lines do not always express specialised properties in culture.     

Present and potential applications of cellulases in agriculture, biotechnology, and bioenergy

Cellulase (CEL) presently constitutes a major group of industrial enzyme based on its diverse ranges of utilization. Apart from such current and well-established applications—as in cotton processing, paper recycling, detergent formulation, juice extraction, and animal feed additives—their uses in agricultural biotechnology and bioenergy have been exploited. Supplementation of CELs to accelerate decomposition of plant residues in soil results in improved soil fertility. So far, applying CELs/antagonistic cellulolytic fungi to crops has shown to promote plant growth performance, including enhanced seed germination and protective effects. Their actions are believed mainly to trigger plant defense mechanisms and/or to act as biocontrol agents that mediate disease suppression. However, the exact interaction between the enzymes/fungi and plants has not been clearly elucidated. Under mild conditions, removal of plant cell wall polysaccharides by CELs for protoplast preparation results in reduced protoplast damage and increased viability and yields. CELs have recently shown great potential in enzyme aid extraction of bioactive compounds from plant materials before selective extraction through enhancing release of target molecules, especially those associated with the wall matrix. To date, attempts have been made to formulate CEL preparation for cellulosic-based bioethanol production. The high cost of CELs has created a bottleneck, resulting in an uneconomic production process. The utilization of low-cost carbohydrates, strain improvement, and gene manipulations has been alternatively aimed at reducing the cost of CEL production. In this review, we focus on and discuss current knowledge of CELs and their applications in agriculture, biotechnology, and bioenergy.     

Biofilms and their impact on the food industry

Biofilm could be defined as a complex communities of microorganisms seen affixed to surfaces, they form clusters without sticking to any surface and buried firmly in an extracellular matrix (ECM). This matrix is formed by microorganisms in the formation of either extracellular polymeric substances (EPSS) or extracellular polymer. Many reviews have addressed the negative consequences of biofilm production in the food industry, among which we talk about biofilms being responsible for spoilage microorganisms and foodborne pathogens such as Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus cereus etc. These contamination could be linked to biofilms presence in the processing plant. Although researches have tried conferring solutions to these challenges in the food industry, however, in this review we have tried to focus on the positive impact of biofilms formed in the food industry. It is critically expedient while trying to find the solution to the challenges of biofilm in the food industry to develop and give a major focus on the advantages and positive impact biofilm has in the food industry, which has been greatly neglected. Hence in this article, we have highlighted some positive impacts of biofilms formed in the food industry, like enhancing plant health and productivity of food products, as an agent of water and wastewater treatment in the food industry, as a tool in reducing the amount of excess sludge in the wastewater treatment plant. The development of edible biofilms, fermented food products and the production of biodegradable food packaging are also part of biofilms beneficial roles in the food industries.     

Enzyme-assisted extraction of flavonoids from Ginkgo biloba leaves: improvement effect of flavonol transglycosylation catalyzed by Penicillium decumbens cellulase

We report a novel enzyme-involved approach to improve the extraction of flavonoids from Ginkgo biloba, in which the enzyme is employed not only for cell wall degradation, but also for increasing the solubility of target compounds in the ethanol-water extractant. Penicillium decumbens cellulase, a commercial cell wall-degrading enzyme with high transglycosylation activity, was found to offer far better performance in the extraction than Trichoderma reesei cellulase and Aspergillus niger pectinase under the presence of maltose as the glycosyl donor. TLC, HPLC and MS analysis indicated that P. decumbens cellulase could transglycosylate flavonol aglycones into more polar glucosides, the higher solubility of which led to improved extraction. The influence of glycosyl donor, pH, solvent and temperature on the enzymatic transglycosylation was investigated. For three predominant flavonoids in G. biloba, the transglycosylation showed similar optimal conditions, which were therefore used for the enzyme-assisted extraction. The extraction yield turned to be 28.3mg/g of dw, 31% higher than that under the pre-optimized conditions, and 102% higher than that under the conditions without enzymes. The utilization of enzymatic bifunctionality described here, naming enzymatic modification of target compounds and facilitation of cell wall degradation, provides a novel approach for the extraction of natural compounds from plants.     

A review of fish-derived antioxidant and antimicrobial peptides: their production, assessment, and applications

Fishes are rich sources of structurally diverse bioactive compounds. In recent years, much attention has been paid to the existence of peptides with biological activities and proteins derived from foods that might have beneficial effects for humans. Antioxidant and antimicrobial peptides isolated from fish sources may be used as functional ingredients in food formulations to promote consumer health and improve the shelf life of food products. This paper presents an overview of the antioxidant and antimicrobial peptides derived from various fishes. In addition, we discuss the extraction of fish proteins, enzymatic production, and the techniques used to isolate and characterize these compounds. Furthermore, we review the methods used to assay the bioactivities and their applications in food and nutraceuticals.     

The quest for natural antimicrobials as novel means of food preservation: Status report on a European research project

At a time when consumers are demanding the partial or complete removal of chemically synthesized preservatives from foods, there is also an increased demand for convenience foods with long shelf-lives. These consumer-led trends have fuelled a renewed interest in the development of ‘more natural’ preservatives for extending the shelf-life and maintaining the safety of foods. Although the antimicrobial properties of many compounds from plant, animal and microbial sources have been reported, their potential for use as natural food preservatives has not been fully exploited. In this paper, the possible uses of natural antimicrobial compounds as food preservatives, used either singly or in combination, are explored. Specific examples are given from a current transnational research project on Natural Antimicrobial Systems sponsored jointly by the European Commission and a consortium of eight food companies. The results of trials with a range of potential natural preservatives including lytic enzymes, bacteriocins from lactic acid bacteria and plant antimicrobials in laboratory media and in a variety of foods and beverages including apple juice, milk, hard-cooked cheese (Emmental) and fresh fruit slices are discussed.     

酵母菌合成2-苯乙醇的研究进展

2-苯乙醇是一种具有令人愉悦的玫瑰风味的芳香醇,在食品、化妆品和药品等领域具有广泛的应用。本文对酵母菌合成2-苯乙醇的代谢途径及其调控过程、以及提高2-苯乙醇产量的国内外研究进展进行了综述,并对通过微生物转化法合成2-苯乙醇目前存在的不足及进一步研究方向进行了讨论。     

Recent developments in the use of transgenic plants for the production of human therapeutics and biopharmaceuticals

In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in the application of plant biotechnology for the production of a variety of commercially valuable simple and complex biological molecules (biologics) for use in human and animal healthcare. Transgenic whole plants and plant cell culture systems have been developed that have the capacity to economically produce large-scale quantities of antibodies and antibody fragments, antigens and/or vaccine epitopes, metabolic enzymes, hormones, (neuro)peptides and a variety of biologically active complexes and secondary metabolites for direct use as therapeutic agents or diagnostic tools in the medical healthcare industry. As the products of genetically modified plants make their way from concept to commercialization the associated risks and acceptance by the public has been become a focal point. In this paper, we summarize the recent advances made in the use of transgenic plants and plant cell cultures as biological factories for the production of human therapeutics and biopharmaceuticals and discuss the long-term potential of `molecular farming' as a low-cost, efficient method for the production of biological materials with demonstrated utility to the pharmaceutical industry or medical community.     

Potential of plant cells in culture for cosmetic application

Plants and plant derived ingredients are common and of major importance in the fields of pharmacy, food and cosmetics. The cosmetic industry is a fast moving market. Products have short life-cycles and the industry has to come up with innovative products constantly. Most cosmetic products and their applications are defined by active ingredients. These active ingredients may derive from either synthetic sources or from plant sources. Beside this, no other origin like human or animal are accepted or allowed in cosmetics nor are genetically modified plant sources. The whole cosmetic research and development society is therefore desperately seeking for new innovative plant ingredients for cosmetic application. Unfortunately, new plant derived ingredients are limited because several plants of cosmetic interest are not to be used due to following facts: the plants contain toxic metabolites, the plants grow too slow and a seasonal harvesting is not possible, the concentration of plant constituents differ from harvest to harvest or the plant is endangered and not allowed to harvest. With the plant cell culture technology we bring complete new aspects in the development of novel cosmetic plant derived actives. Due to all these findings, we decided to risk the step into plant cell culture derived cosmetic active ingredient production. This article describes the successful establishment of an apple suspension culture producing a high yield of biomass, cultured in disposable, middle-scale bioreactors. The use of a bioactive extract out of these cells for cosmetic application and the efficacy of this extract on mammalian stem cells is also outlined in this article. To obtain a suitable cosmetic product we used the high pressure homogenization technique to decompose the plant cells and release all the beneficial constituents while encapsulating these components at the same time in liquid Nanoparticles. With the plant cell culture technology we bring complete new aspects in the development of novel cosmetic plants derived actives.     

Antioxidant properties and cytotoxic effects of selected edible plants in Southeast Asia for further use as phytogenic antioxidant additives

Excessive free radicals in human and animal bodies can cause oxidative stress (OS) which damages cells and tissues. Plant materials with high antioxidant potential would resolve the OS problem. Thus, this study proposed to investigate the total phenolic (TPC) and flavonoid contents (TFC), antioxidant capacities and cytotoxicity in 17 edible plant materials from herbs, fruits, vegetables and plant by-products available in Southeast Asia for future use in the food or feed industry. Among 17 plant materials, Syzygium aromaticum (clove), Camellia sinensi (green tea pomace) from the beverage industry and Persicaria odorata (Vietnamese coriander) showed a prominent amount of TPC and TFC. These three plants and their combination (1:1:1 ratio, v:v:v) also possessed a remarkable antioxidant function in terms of DPPH, ABTS and FRAP, as well as showing a strong ROS inhibition through HepG2 cells. The cytotoxicity test of the crude extract of clove, green tea pomace and Vietnamese coriander, or their combination can be used between 0.032 and 0.255, 0.011 to 0.088, 0.022 to 0.178 and 0.021 to 0.346 mg/mL, respectively, without impeding cell viability. A combined mixture of clove, green tea pomace and Vietnamese coriander revealed the synergistic properties of antioxidants and cell safety. This indicates that there is a potential use of various antioxidant bioactive compounds in plant materials tested for use as phytogenic antioxidant additives.     

OMICS-rooted studies of milk proteins,oligosaccharides and lipids

Milk has co-evolved with mammals and mankind to nourish their offspring and is a biological fluid of unique complexity and richness. It contains all necessary nutrients for the growth and development of the newborn. Structure and function of biomolecules in milk such as the macronutrients (glyco-) proteins, lipids, and oligosaccharides are central topics in nutritional research. Omics disciplines such as proteomics, glycomics, glycoproteomics, and lipidomics enable comprehensive analysis of these biomolecule components in food science and industry. Mass spectrometry has largely expanded our knowledge on these milk bioactives as it enables identification, quantification and characterization of milk proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids. In this article, we describe the biological importance of milk macronutrients and review the application of proteomics, glycomics, glycoproteomics, and lipidomics to the analysis of milk. Proteomics is a central platform among the Omics tools that have more recently been adapted and applied to nutrition and health research in order to deliver biomarkers for health and comfort as well as to discover beneficial food bioactives.