ALGINATE DISPLAYS EXCELLENT BIOCOMPATIBILITY AND BIODEGRADABILITY AND HAS MANY DIFFERENT APPLICATIONS IN BIOMEDICINE AND THE FOOD INDUSTRY. ALGINATE-BASED BIOMATERIALS CAN BE USED IN REGENERATIVE MEDICINE AS A DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEM AND CELL CARRIER. IN FOOD APPLICATIONS, IT IS A POPULAR INGREDIENT, FOOD ADDITIVE, AND CARRIER OF ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS IN ALGINATE GEL ENCAPSULATION. THE ANIONIC POLYSACCHARIDE CAN BE EASILY MODIFIED VIA CHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL REACTIONS TO OBTAIN THREE-DIMENSIONAL (3D) SCAFFOLDING DERIVATIVES SUCH AS HYDROGELS, MICROSPHERES, MICROCAPSULES, SPONGES, FOAMS, AND FIBERS. ALGINATE-DERIVED SUPPORTED MATRICES? BIODEGRADABILITY, BIOCOMPATIBILITY, MECHANICAL STRENGTH, AND EXCEPTIONAL CHELATING PROPERTIES MAKE THEM USEFUL FOR A BROAD RANGE OF APPLICATIONS. THIS CHAPTER FOCUSES ON RECENT ADVANCES IN THE USE OF ALGINATE AND ITS DERIVATIVES IN THE BIOMEDICAL AND FOOD INDUSTRIES, INCLUDING USES SUCH AS WOUND HEALING, CARTILAGE AND BONE REGENERATION, DRUG DELIVERY, FOOD ADDITIVES, AND, IN ENCAPSULATED FORM, CARRIERS OF MICRONUTRIENTS AND BIOACTIVE COMPONENTS.

MODERN LIFE HAS CREATED A HIGH DEMAND FOR FUNCTIONAL FOOD, AND IN THIS CONTEXT, EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES SUCH AS VACUUM IMPREGNATION AND OHMIC HEATING HAVE BEEN APPLIED TO GENERATE FUNCTIONAL FOODS. THE AIM OF THIS RESEARCH WAS TO ENRICH THE CONTENT OF THE SEMI-ESSENTIAL AMINO ACID L-ARGININE IN APPLE CUBES USING VACUUM IMPREGNATION, CONVENTIONAL HEATING, AND OHMIC HEATING. ADDITIONALLY, COMBINED VACUUM IMPREGNATION/CONVENTIONAL HEATING AND VACUUM IMPREGNATION/OHMIC HEATING TREATMENTS WERE EVALUATED. THE ABOVE TREATMENTS WERE APPLIED AT 30, 40 AND 50 ? AND COMBINED WITH AIR-DRYING AT 40 ? IN ORDER TO OBTAIN AN APPLE SNACK RICH IN L-ARGININE. BOTH THE IMPREGNATION KINETICS OF L-ARGININE AND SAMPLE COLOR WERE EVALUATED. THE IMPREGNATED SAMPLES CREATED USING VACUUM IMPREGNATION/OHMIC HEATING AT 50 ? PRESENTED A HIGH CONTENT OF L-ARGININE, AN EFFECT ATTRIBUTED PRIMARILY TO ELECTROPERMEABILIZATION. OVERALL, VACUUM IMPREGNATION/OHMIC HEATING TREATMENT AT 50 ?, FOLLOWED BY DRYING AT 40 ?, WAS THE BEST PROCESS FOR OBTAINING AN APPLE SNACK RICH IN L-ARGININE.

THE CHANGES OF LIFESTYLE AND EATING HABITS OF CONSUMERS HAVE INDUCED A GROWTH IN THE DEMAND FOR FUNCTIONAL FOOD. THE AIM OF THIS WORK WAS TO STUDY THE INCORPORATION OF FOLIC ACID INTO APPLE SLICES BY USING OHMIC HEATING (OH) AND VACUUM IMPREGNATION (VI) AT 30, 40 AND 50 °C AND AIR DRYING AT 50, 60 AND 70 °C TO OBTAIN AN APPLE SNACK THAT IS RICH IN FOLIC ACID. THE KINETIC IMPREGNATION OF FOLIC ACID, TEXTURE AND COLOR WERE EVALUATED. THE IMPREGNATED SAMPLES (VI) AT 40 °C AND VACUUM-IMPREGNATED SAMPLES WITH OHMIC HEATING (VI/OH) AT 50 °C PRESENTED A HIGH CONTENT OF FOLIC ACID, WHEREAS THE SAMPLES AIR DRIED AT 60 °C PRESENTED AN IMPORTANT RETENTION OF FOLIC ACID. THE LOWEST LOSS OF FIRMNESS AND COLOR WAS OBTAINED WITH THE VI/OH TREATMENT AT 50 °C WITH DRYING AT 60 °C. THEREFORE, THE VI/OH TREATMENT AT 50 °C FOLLOWED BY DRYING AT 60 °C WAS DETERMINED TO BE THE BEST PROCESS FOR CREATING DEHYDRATED APPLE SLICES THAT ARE RICH IN FOLIC ACID.

CENTRIFUGATION IS AN ALTERNATIVE ASSISTED TECHNIQUE TO IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY OF BLOCK FREEZE CONCENTRATION. IN THIS STUDY REPORTED THE CENTRIFUGATION TO ENHANCE THE SEPARATION OF CONCENTRATED SOLUTION FROM FROZEN FRUIT JUICES (BLUEBERRY AND PINEAPPLE) IN THREE CRYOCONCENTRATION CYCLES. TO FORCE THE SEPARATION OF SOLUTES FROM THE FROZEN SAMPLES WE USED A CENTRIFUGE OPERATED FOR 10 MIN AT 20 °C AND 4600 RPM. THIS TECHNIQUE HAS GOOD PERFORMANCE AFTER THE THIRD CYCLE, REACHING AN INCREASE OF APPROXIMATELY 2.5 TIMES THE INITIAL CONCENTRATIONS OF SOLIDS, VALUES CLOSE TO 0.74 KG SOLUTE PER 1 KG INITIAL SOLUTE, AND APPROXIMATELY 60% OF THE PERCENTAGE OF CONCENTRATE. THE PERFORMANCE OF BLOCK FREEZE CONCENTRATION ASSISTED BY CENTRIFUGATION APPLIED TO FRUIT JUICES WAS ATTRIBUTED TO ICE MATRIX ACTING AS A POROUS SOLID THROUGH WHICH THE CONCENTRATED SOLUTION PERCOLATES THROUGH DRAINAGE CHANNELS OF THE ICE IMPROVED BY THE CENTRIFUGAL FORCE. INDUSTRIAL RELEVANCE THE BLOCK FREEZE CONCENTRATION ALLOWS PRODUCING FOOD CONCENTRATES WITH HIGH QUALITY WHEN THAWED A FROZEN SOLUTION ASSISTED OR NOT BY A TECHNIQUE TO ENHANCE THE SEPARATION EFFICIENCY. IN THIS WORK HAS APPLIED CENTRIFUGATION AS AN ASSISTED TECHNIQUE TO IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY OF BLOCK FREEZE CONCENTRATION APPLIED TO FRUIT JUICES, OBTAINING PROMISSORY RESULTS.

BLUEBERRIES ARE A SOFT AND SMALL FRUIT NATIVE TO NORTH AMERICA WITH AN ATTRACTIVE BLUE COLOR. IN ADDITION, BLUEBERRIES ARE VERY POPULAR BECAUSE THEY HAVE LOW CALORIES, HIGH NUTRITIONAL VALUE AND IMPORTANT ANTIOXIDANT PROPERTIES. BLUEBERRIES HAVE AN INTERESTING CONTENT OF PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS WITH HIGH ANTIOXIDANT CAPACITY AGAINST FREE RADICALS AND REACTIVE SPECIES, SUCH THAT BLUEBERRY CONSUMPTION MAY HAVE A POTENTIAL BENEFICIAL EFFECT ON HUMAN HEALTH. INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY ARE NEW TECHNOLOGIES BASED TO DEVELOP MORE EFFICIENT PROCESS OR PRODUCTS, REDUCTION OF ENERGY AND WATER. INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES, SUCH AS FREEZE CONCENTRATION, OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION AND VACUUM IMPREGNATION AT MILD TEMPERATURES, ARE CONSIDERED MINIMAL PROCESSING TECHNIQUES BECAUSE THEY PRESERVE THE FRESH CHARACTERISTICS OF FRUITS SUCH AS BLUEBERRIES. FREEZE CONCENTRATION IS AN INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY FOR PRODUCING A BLUEBERRY CONCENTRATE JUICE IN A PROCESS AT LOW TEMPERATURES WHERE NO VAPOR/LIQUID INTERFACE EXISTS. ON THE OTHER HAND, OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION AND VACUUM IMPREGNATION OF BLUEBERRIES PRESERVES DIFFERENT VALUABLE ATTRIBUTES OF THE FRUIT, PROVIDING PRODUCTS WITH AN EXTENDED SHELF-LIFE.

BLUEBERRIES ARE A POPULAR FRUIT WITH AN ATTRACTIVE FLAVOR AND COLOR, AS WELL AS HEALTH BENEFITS. THESE HEALTH BENEFITS HAVE BEEN ATTRIBUTED TO THE IMPORTANT NUMBER OF BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN BLUEBERRIES WITH ACTIVITIES SUCH AS ANTIOXIDANT, ANTITUMOR, ANTIMUTAGENIC, AND ANTIDIABETIC EFFECTS AND THE PREVENTION OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES. DESPITE THESE ADVANTAGES, BLUEBERRIES ARE ONLY OBTAINED FRESH IN CERTAIN SEASONS; THEREFORE, THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE INDUSTRY TRANSFORMS THEM INTO JELLY, PUREE, OR JUICE. HOWEVER, THE CONCENTRATION PROCESS COULD HELP PRESERVE THE BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS OF BLUEBERRY BYPRODUCTS. CONCENTRATION TECHNOLOGIES FOCUS ON THE REMOVAL OF EXCESS WATER TO INCREASE THE PRODUCT STABILITY AND REDUCE STORAGE AND TRANSPORTATION COSTS BY CAUSING THEM TO TAKE UP LESS SPACE OR AS A PRETREATMENT BEFORE DEHYDRATION. THESE TECHNOLOGIES INCLUDE EVAPORATION, REVERSE OSMOSIS, AND FREEZE CONCENTRATION, AND EACH ONE HAS DIFFERENT EFFECTS ON THE EFFICIENCY, QUALITY, AND NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF THE FINAL CONCENTRATES. HOWEVER, FREEZE CONCENTRATION AND REVERSE OSMOSIS PRODUCE A HIGHER-FINAL QUALITY CONCENTRATE THAN EVAPORATION DUE TO THE USE OF LOW TEMPERATURES, WHICH PREVENTS THE LOSS OF THERMOLABILE COMPONENTS SUCH AS BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS. THEREFORE, THIS REVIEW SUMMARIZES THE IMPACT OF CONCENTRATION TECHNOLOGIES ON THE BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS AND HEALTH BENEFITS OF BLUEBERRY JUICE.

CENTRIFUGAL CRYOCONCENTRATION HAS BEEN SHOWN TO BE EFFECTIVE IN THE DESALINATION OF SEAWATER, CONCENTRATION OF PROTEINS, AND LIQUID FOODS, MAINLY FRUIT JUICES; IN THE LATTER, IT IS PARTICULARLY INTERESTING TO BE A NON-DESTRUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY ON VARIOUS BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS, SUCH AS POLYPHENOLS, WHICH HAVE BEEN FOUND IN SEVERAL FRUIT JUICES SUCH AS PRICKLY PEAR. AN IMPORTANT ISSUE IS RELATED TO CENTRIFUGATION'S EFFECT ON THE CONCENTRATION EFFICIENCY OF CRYOCONCENTRATION. THE PRESENT WORK'S MAIN OBJECTIVE WAS TO STUDY THE BLOCK CRYOCONCENTRATION ASSISTED BY CENTRIFUGATION (BCCC), THEIR EFFECTS ON THE POLYPHENOLS, AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY APPLIED TO PRICKLY PEAR JUICE. PRICKLY PEAR JUICE WAS OBTAINED, BX, PH, TITRATABLE ACIDITY, COLOR, TOTAL REDUCING SUGARS, TOTAL PHENOLIC CONTENT (TPC), FLAVONOIDS, FRAP, DPPH, AND PROCESS PARAMETERS (EFFICIENCY (?), CONCENTRATION INDEX (CI), AND SOLUTE YIELD (Y)) WERE EVALUATED. DATA OBTAINED FOR PHYSICOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS SHOWED HIGH VALUES OF °BX IN CRYOCONCENTRATED SAMPLES, PH VALUES DECREASED IN TREATED SAMPLES, AND TOTAL TITRATABLE ACIDITY INCREASED, TOTAL REDUCING SUGARS WERE HIGHER IN SAMPLES TREATED AT THE LOWER TIME OF CENTRIFUGATION, ALL EXPERIMENTAL SAMPLES SHOWED NOTICEABLE COLOR CHANGES. HIGHER TOTAL PHENOLIC AND FLAVONOID CONTENT WERE OBSERVED IN SAMPLES TREATED AT 15 MIN OF CENTRIFUGATION; DPPH AND FRAP TESTS WERE HIGHLY CORRELATED WITH TPC AND FLAVONOID CONTENT (R2> 0.96). HIGH EFFICIENCY AND CONCENTRATION INDEX WERE OBSERVED; HOWEVER, A LOW VALUE OF SOLUTE YIELD WAS FOUND IN CRYOCONCENTRATED JUICE. THE USE OF CRYOCONCENTRATION FOR PRICKLY PEAR JUICES SHOWS GOOD RESULTS FOR PHYSICOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS, PRESERVATION OF BIOACTIVE, AND PROCESS PARAMETERS WITH THE EXCEPTION OF SOLUTE YIELD.

ASSISTED TECHNIQUES THAT IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY OF FREEZE CONCENTRATION IN ONE-STEP CONFIGURATIONS ARE IMPORTANT IN ACHIEVING COMMERCIAL VIABILITY. AN ALTERNATIVE REPORTED IN THIS STUDY IS THE USE OF THE CENTRIFUGATION FOR SEPARATING THE CONCENTRATED SOLUTION FROM THE ICE MATRIX. BY APPLYING CENTRIFUGATION, HIGH VALUES OF SOLUTE HAD RECOVERED, REACHING APPROXIMATELY 0.73 KG OF SUCROSE OBTAINED PER 1 KG OF INITIAL SUCROSE AT 1600 RCF OF CENTRIFUGATION SPEED, INDEPENDENT OF INITIAL CONCENTRATION OF SUCROSE (5 TO 20 WT.%) AND FREEZING PROCEDURE (RADIAL OR UNIDIRECTIONAL FREEZING). THE PERFORMANCE OF CENTRIFUGAL FREEZE CONCENTRATION MAY BE ATTRIBUTED TO ICE MATRIX THAT ACTED AS A POROUS SOLID THROUGH WHICH THE CONCENTRATED SOLUTION PERCOLATES THROUGH DRAINAGE CHANNELS BETWEEN ICE CRYSTALS IMPROVED BY THE CENTRIFUGAL FORCE.

CRYOCONCENTRATED BLUEBERRY JUICE (CBJ) WAS INCORPORATED INTO AERATED GELATIN GEL AND THE EFFECTS ON THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES, PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY (AA) WERE EVALUATED AT DAY 1 AND DAY 28 UNDER REFRIGERATED STORAGE. AT DAY 1, 8 G OF GELATIN GEL AND 40 G OF CBJ (CALLED M5) EXHIBITED A SOFT TEXTURE AND HETEROGENEOUS AND NON-SPHERICAL SMALL BUBBLES, WITH VALUES CLOSE TO 10.5, 8.0 AND 7.1 N, FOR HARDNESS, GUMMINESS AND CHEWINESS, RESPECTIVELY. M5 PRESENTED AN INCREASE OF APPROXIMATELY 1.7, 1.9 AND 1.9, AND 1.2, 1.8, 2.1 AND 1.3 TIMES IN COMPARISON TO THE OTHER SAMPLES, FOR TOTAL POLYPHENOL, ANTHOCYANIN AND FLAVONOID CONTENTS, AND INDIVIDUAL PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS, 2,2-DIPHENYL-1-PICRYLHYDRAZYL (DPPH), FERRIC REDUCING ANTIOXIDANT POWER (FRAP) AND OXYGEN RADICAL ABSORBANCE CAPACITY (ORAC) ASSAYS, RESPECTIVELY. AT DAY 28, THE SAMPLES SHOWED A WEAKENING OF THE 3D NETWORK, WITH HIGH DEGRADATION OF PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS AND AA DUE TO THE OXIDATION, POLYMERIZATION AND SYNERESIS. THEREFORE, CBJ MIGHT BE AN INTERESTING FUNCTIONAL INGREDIENT TO ADD TO (AERATED AND NON-AERATED) GELATIN GEL WITHOUT AFFECTING ITS PROPERTIES, AND THUS DIFFERENT FOOD PRODUCTS WITH HIGH NUTRITIONAL VALUES AND WITHOUT ADDED ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS COULD BE DEVELOPED. ADDITIONALLY, THE GELATIN GEL/CBJ COMBINATIONS MIGHT BE SUITABLE FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AS A COATING OF FOOD MATRICES.

THE POPULATION OF OLDER ADULTS IS GROWING GLOBALLY. THIS INCREASE HAS LED TO AN ACCUMULATION OF CHRONIC ILLNESSES, SO-CALLED AGE-RELATED DISEASES. DIET AND NUTRITION ARE CONSIDERED THE MAIN DRIVERS OF THE GLOBAL BURDEN OF DISEASES, AND THIS SITUATION APPLIES ESPECIALLY TO THIS POPULATION SEGMENT. IT RELATES DIRECTLY TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF CORONARY HEART DISEASE, HYPERTENSION, SOME TYPES OF CANCER, AND TYPE 2 DIABETES, AMONG OTHER DISEASES, WHILE AGE-ASSOCIATED CHANGES IN BODY COMPOSITION (BONE AND MUSCLE MASS, FAT, SARCOPENIA) CONSTITUTE RISK FACTORS FOR FUNCTIONAL LIMITATIONS AFFECTING HEALTH STATUS AND THE QUALITY OF LIFE. OLDER ADULTS PRESENT EATING AND SWALLOWING PROBLEMS, DRY MOUTH, TASTE LOSS, AND ANOREXIA AMONG OTHER PROBLEMS CAUSING ""ANOREXIA OF AGING"" THAT AFFECTS THEIR NUTRITIONAL STATUS. THE STRATEGIES TO OVERCOME THESE SITUATIONS ARE DESCRIBED IN THIS STUDY. THE IMPACT OF ORAL FOOD PROCESSING ON NUTRITION IS DISCUSSED, AS WELL AS APPROACHES TO IMPROVE FOOD ACCEPTANCE THROUGH THE DESIGN OF INNOVATIVE FOODS. THESE FOODS SHOULD SUPPLY A GROWING DEMAND AS THIS GROUP REPRESENTS AN INCREASING SEGMENT OF THE CONSUMER MARKET GLOBALLY, WHOSE NEEDS MUST BE FULFILLED.

AT THE PRESENT TIME, THE FOOD INDUSTRY IS INCREASINGLY INTERESTED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF FORMULATIONS WITH MAQUI-BERRY EXTRACTS AS A RICH SOURCE OF BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS. MAQUI, NATIVE TO CHILE, IS A RELATIVELY NEW FOOD RAW MATERIAL THAT IS OFTEN CALLED A ?SUPERFRUIT?, THE BERRIES OF THIS PLANT ARE RICH IN ANTHOCYANINS, PHENOLIC ACIDS, AND TANNINS; COMPOUNDS THAT PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE AS SOURCES OF BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN THE HEALTH OF CONSUMERS. CRYOCONCENTRATION, A TECHNOLOGY THAT PRESERVES THERMOLABILE BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS BY COMBINING TECHNIQUES OF FREEZING-CENTRIFUGATION, MAKES IT POSSIBLE TO OBTAIN CONCENTRATES WITH A GREATER CONTENT OF BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS THAN TRADITIONAL METHODS OF CONCENTRATION. IN THIS STUDY, MAQUI FRUITS WERE PULPED TO OBTAIN JUICE (J) AND CHAFF. THE CHAFF WAS SUBJECTED TO AQUEOUS EXTRACTION WITH DISTILLED WATER IN A RATIO OF 1?:?1?P/V TO OBTAIN MAQUI EXTRACT (E). COMBINED J AND E WERE HOMOGENIZED, AND VACUUM FILTERED TO OBTAIN THE FINAL EXTRACT (A), WHICH WAS CRYOCONCENTRATED AT ? 30°C AND THEN SUBJECTED TO 3 CONTINUOUS CYCLES OF FREEZING-CENTRIFUGATION AND FILTRATION.

THIS WORK STUDIED THE EFFECTS OF CENTRIFUGAL BLOCK FREEZE CRYSTALLIZATION (CBFC) ON PHYSICOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS, TOTAL PHENOLIC COMPOUND CONTENT (TPCC), ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY (AA), AND PROCESS PARAMETERS APPLIED TO FRESH MURTA AND ARRAYAN JUICES. IN THE LAST CYCLE, FOR FRESH MURTA AND ARRAYAN JUICES, THE TOTAL SOLUBLE SOLIDS (TSS) SHOWED VALUES CLOSE TO 48 AND 54 BRIX, AND TPCC EXHIBITED VALUES OF APPROXIMATELY 20 AND 66 MG GALLIC ACID EQUIVALENTS/100 GRAMS DRY MATTER (D.M.) FOR TOTAL POLYPHENOL CONTENT, 13 AND 25 MG CYANIDIN-3-GLUCOSIDE EQUIVALENTS/100 GRAMS D.M. FOR TOTAL ANTHOCYANIN CONTENT, AND 9 AND 17 MG QUERCETIN EQUIVALENTS/100 GRAMS D.M. FOR TOTAL FLAVONOID CONTENT, RESPECTIVELY. MOREOVER, THE TPCC RETENTION INDICATED VALUES OVER 78% FOR MURTA JUICE, AND 82% FOR ARRAYAN JUICE. SIMILARLY, THE AA PRESENTED AN INCREASE OVER 2.1 TIMES IN RELATION TO THE CORRESPONDENT INITIAL AA VALUE. THUS, THE PROCESS PARAMETERS VALUES WERE BETWEEN 69% AND 85% FOR EFFICIENCY, 70% AND 88% FOR PERCENTAGE OF CONCENTRATE, AND 0.72% AND 0.88 (KG SOLUTES/KG INITIAL SOLUTES) FOR SOLUTE YIELD. THEREFORE, THIS WORK PROVIDES INSIGHT ABOUT CBFC ON VALUABLE PROPERTIES IN FRESH PATAGONIAN BERRIES JUICES, FOR FUTURE APPLICATIONS IN HEALTH AND INDUSTRIAL SCALE.

QUALITY PROPERTIES OF CONCENTRATE PINEAPPLE JUICE OBTAINED BY BLOCK FREEZE CRYSTALLIZATION (BFC) AND EVAPORATION TECHNOLOGY ARE INVESTIGATED. AFTER THREE CONCENTRATION CYCLES, THE SOLUTES WERE APPROXIMATELY 3.2?TIMES COMPARED TO THE INITIAL CONDITION AND THE FINAL COLOR WAS DARKER THAN THAT OF THE FRESH JUICE. BFC ALLOWED FOR HIGHER BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS RETENTION THAN EVAPORATION IN TERMS OF TOTAL PHENOLIC, FLAVONOID, AND ANTHOCYANIN CONTENT. THE CRYOCONCENTRATE JUICE SHOWED A SIMILAR AROMATIC PROFILE TO THE FRESH JUICE, WITH 26 AND 23 COMPOUNDS, RESPECTIVELY. CONVERSELY, ONLY SEVEN VOLATILE COMPOUNDS WERE IDENTIFIED IN THE EVAPORATE SAMPLE. FINALLY, BFC IS AN EFFECTIVE TECHNOLOGY TO PRESERVE IMPORTANT QUALITY PROPERTIES FROM FRESH FRUIT JUICES SUCH AS COLOR, POLYPHENOLS, AND AROMATIC PROFILE.

CRYOCONCENTRATE BLUEBERRY JUICE (CBJ) AT DIFFERENT CONCENTRATIONS WAS INCORPORATED INTO GELATIN GEL AND THE EFFECTS ON RHEOLOGICAL AND TEXTURAL PROPERTIES, TOTAL BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS (TBC) AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY (AA) WERE EVALUATED. SPECIFICALLY, CBJ AT 20 G/100 G REINFORCED THE GEL STRUCTURE, SINCE THE SAMPLE SHOWED THE HIGHEST GELLING (15.0 °C) AND MELTING TEMPERATURES (27.4 °C) IN COMPARISON TO THE OTHER SAMPLES. ADDITIONALLY, THIS CBJ CONCENTRATION HAD AN INCREASE OF 28%, 46%, 47% AND 54% IN RELATION TO THE INITIAL GEL STRENGTH, HARDNESS, GUMMINESS, AND CHEWINESS, RESPECTIVELY. IN TBC AND AA TERMS, THE VALUES WERE CLOSE TO 55 MG GAE/100 G, 4.5 MG C3G/100 G, 18 MG CEQ/100 G, 42, 29 AND 738 ?MOL TE/100 G, WHICH ARE EQUIVALENT TO 18%, 11%, 14%, 8%, 3% AND 32%, FOR TOTAL POLYPHENOL, ANTHOCYANIN AND FLAVONOID CONTENTS, 2,2-DIPHENYL-1-PICRYLHYDRAZYL (DPPH), FERRIC REDUCING ANTIOXIDANT POWER (FRAP) AND OXYGEN RADICAL ABSORBANCE CAPACITY (ORAC) ASSAYS, IN RELATION TO THE INITIAL CBJ VALUE, RESPECTIVELY. SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPE IMAGES REVEALED THAT THE CBJ-GELATIN GELS FORMED A STRUCTURAL NETWORK WITH POROUS AND THICK WALLS. THEREFORE, CBJ HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BE AN EXCELLENT INGREDIENT TO ADD DURING GELATIN GEL PREPARATION SINCE IT DELIVERS BIOACTIVE COMPONENTS WITHOUT AFFECTING THE RHEOLOGICAL AND TEXTURAL PROPERTIES.

HYDROGELS CAN ABSORB AND/OR RETAIN COMPONENTS IN THE INTERSTITIAL SPACES DUE TO THE 3D CROSS-LINKED POLYMER NETWORK, AND THUS, THESE MATRICES CAN BE USED IN DIFFERENT ENGINEERING APPLICATIONS. THIS STUDY FOCUSES ON THE PHYSICOCHEMICAL AND TEXTURAL PROPERTIES, AS WELL AS BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS AND THEIR ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY STABILITY OF COMMERCIAL HYDROGELS FORTIFIED WITH CRYOCONCENTRATED BLUEBERRY JUICE (CBJ) STORED FOR 35 DAYS. CBJ WAS ADDED TO COMMERCIAL HYDROGELS (GELATIN GEL (GG), AERATED GELATIN GEL (AGG), GUMMY (GM), AND AERATED GUMMY (AGM)). THE SAMPLES SHOWED A TOTAL POLYPHENOL, ANTHOCYANIN, AND FLAVONOID CONTENT RANGING FROM 230 TO 250 MG GAE/100 G, 3.5 TO 3.9 MG C3G/100 G, AND 120 TO 136 MG CEQ/100 G, RESPECTIVELY, AND GG AND GM SHOWED THE LOWEST BIOACTIVE COMPONENT DEGRADATION RATE, WHILE AGM PRESENTED THE HIGHEST DEGRADATION. GG AND GM SAMPLES COULD BE STORED FOR UP TO 21 DAYS WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT CHANGES, WHILE THE RESULTS INDICATED ?15 DAYS FOR THE AGG AND AGM SAMPLES. THEREBY, CBJ OFFERS ENORMOUS POSSIBILITIES TO BE USED AS A FUNCTIONAL INGREDIENT DUE TO THE HIGH NUTRITIONAL VALUES, AND IT ALLOWS ENRICHING DIFFERENT HYDROGEL SAMPLES, AND IN TURN, THE STRUCTURES OF HYDROGELS PROTECTED COMPONENTS DURING IN VITRO DIGESTION, ENHANCING THE BIOACCESSIBILITY AFTER THE DIGESTION PROCESS.

VACUUM-ASSISTED FREEZE CONCENTRATION IS A TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS PRODUCES HIGH-QUALITY CONCENTRATES AND THUS ACHIEVES THE PROTECTION OF HEAT-LABILE COMPONENTS IN FRESH SAMPLES. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE USE OF VACUUM-ASSISTED BLOCK FREEZE CONCENTRATION IN THE ELABORATION OF ORANGE JUICE. FRESH JUICE WAS UNIDIRECTIONAL FROZEN AT ?20?°C FOR 12 HR AND VACUUM WAS PERFORMED AT 80 KPA. THE RESULTS SHOWED, 20 MIN OF SUCTION, AN INCREASED IN CONCENTRATED FRACTION AND ASCORBIC ACID CONTENT BY 4.4 AND 4.1 TIMES, RESPECTIVELY, COMPARED WITH THE FRESH JUICE. THE CRYOCONCENTRATES WERE DARKER THAN THE INITIAL SAMPLE, WITH ?E* VALUES >10 CIELAB UNITS IN ALL TREATMENTS. IN ADDITION, ACHIEVED HIGH VALUES WITH 84% IN EFFICIENCY AND 35% OF CONCENTRATE. IT WAS CONCLUDED THAT VACUUM IN FREEZE CONCENTRATION OF ORANGE JUICE WAS EFFECTIVE FOR OBTAINING A HIGH-QUALITY CONCENTRATE WITH A HIGHER CONCENTRATION OF SOLIDS AND ASCORBIC ACID CONTENT COMPARED WITH THE FRESH SAMPLE.

A MODEL (SUCROSE AND GALLIC ACID) SOLUTION WAS CONCENTRATED BY BLOCK FREEZE CONCENTRATION (BFC) AT THREE CENTRIFUGATION CYCLES, AND THE SOLUTIONS WERE ENCAPSULATED IN CALCIUM ALGINATE AND CORN STARCH CALCIUM ALGINATE HYDROGEL BEADS. STATIC AND DYNAMIC TESTS DETERMINED THE RHEOLOGICAL BEHAVIOR, DIFFERENTIAL SCANNING CALORIMETRY (DSC) AND FOURIER TRANSFORM INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY (FTIR) ESTABLISHED THERMAL AND STRUCTURAL PROPERTIES, AND THE RELEASE KINETICS WAS EVALUATED UNDER IN VITRO SIMULATED DIGESTION EXPERIMENT. THE HIGHEST EFFICIENCY ENCAPSULATION VALUE WAS CLOSE TO 96%. AS THE CONCENTRATED SOLUTION INCREASED IN TERMS OF SOLUTES AND GALLIC ACID, THE SOLUTIONS WERE FITTED TO THE HERSCHEL?BULKLEY MODEL. MOREOVER, FROM THE SECOND CYCLE, THE SOLUTIONS EXHIBITED THE HIGHEST VALUES OF STORAGE MODULUS (G?) AND LOSS MODULUS (G??), CONTRIBUTING TO FORM A MORE STABLE ENCAPSULATION. THE FTIR AND DSC RESULTS DEMONSTRATED STRONG INTERACTIONS BETWEEN CORN STARCH AND ALGINATE, ESTABLISHING A GOOD COMPATIBILITY AND STABILITY IN THE BEAD FORMATION. THE KINETIC RELEASE MODEL UNDER IN VITRO CONDITIONS WAS FITTED TO THE KORSMEYER?PEPPAS MODEL, DEMONSTRATING THE SIGNIFICANT STABILITY OF THE MODEL SOLUTIONS INSIDE THE BEADS. THEREFORE, THE PRESENT STUDY PROPOSES A CLEAR AND PRECISE DEFINITION FOR THE ELABORATION OF LIQUID FOODS OBTAINED BY BFC AND ITS INCORPORATION INSIDE AN EDIBLE MATERIAL THAT FACILITATES THE CONTROLLED RELEASE IN SPECIFIC SITES

ENCAPSULATION IS A TECHNIQUE USED IN FOODS THAT MAY PROTECT SOME COMPOUNDS WITH SENSORY IMPACT, IN PARTICULAR FLAVORING AS LIQUID SMOKE. WE USED THE DRIPPING METHOD, OBTAINING TWO DIFFERENT LAYERS FOR ENCAPSULATION OF LIQUID SMOKE: CALCIUM ALGINATE AND CALCIUM ALGINATE-CHITOSAN. THE RESULTS SHOW THAT THE LOAD CAPACITY OF LIQUID SMOKE ENCAPSULATION REACHED VALUES ABOVE 96 %. THE BEADS EXHIBIT SYNERESIS AT ROOM TEMPERATURE, BUT IN OPPOSITE SIDE, REFRIGERATION TEMPERATURE STABILIZES THE HYDROGEL OF BEADS, ALLOWING THE SAMPLES LOSS WEIGHT LESS THAN 3 % AFTER 72 H. HEATED CAPSULES WITH LIQUID SMOKE RELEASED SEVERAL VOLATILE COMPOUNDS IN THE HEADSPACE AND MAY IDENTIFY 66 COMPOUNDS. AMONG THESE VOLATILE COMPOUNDS, PHENOLS DERIVATIVES CAN BE CONSIDERED SENSORY DESCRIPTORS TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE SPECIFIC FLAVOR OF SMOKE. WE CONCLUDE THAT THE DRIPPING METHOD IS HIGHLY EFFICIENT TO ENCAPSULATE LIQUID SMOKE AND RELEASED SEVERAL VOLATILE COMPOUNDS, ALTHOUGH IT IS NECESSARY TO MINIMIZE SYNERESIS AT ROOM TEMPERATURE.

POMEGRANATE JUICE IS AN IMPORTANT SOURCE OF BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS, AND CRYOCONCENTRATED JUICE IS AN INTERESTING OSMODEHYDRATION AGENT TO ENRICH A VEGETAL MATRIX. THIS INVESTIGATION AIMED TO INCORPORATE BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS FROM POMEGRANATE CRYOCONCENTRATED JUICE INTO APPLE SLICES USING OSMODEHYDRATION (OD) ASSISTED BY PULSE VACUUM (PV) AND OHMIC HEATING (OH). THE APPLE SLICES (3?×?4?×?0.5?CM) WERE OSMODEHYDRATED USING A 47 °BRIX POMEGRANATE CRYOCONCENTRATED JUICE AT 30, 40, OR 50°C FOR 180?MIN WITH AN ELECTRIC FIELD OF 6.66?V/CM (50?V) AND A 5?MIN PULSED VACUUM. OVER THE TIME, ALL OF THE TREATMENTS APPLIED TO THE APPLE SLICES INCREASED THE SOLUBLE SOLIDS AND BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS COMPARED WITH THE FRESH SAMPLE. PVOD/OH AT 50°C HAD THE HIGHEST CONTENT OF TOTAL ANTHOCYANIN DURING PROCESSING, AND THE BEST RESULTS FOR THE TOTAL FLAVONOIDS WERE OBTAINED WITH OD/OH AT 50°C AND 40°C. THE OSMODEHYDRATION ASSISTED BY PULSE VACUUM AND OHMIC HEATING USING A CRYOCONCENTRATED JUICE IS A USEFUL COMBINED TECHNIQUE TO ACQUIRE ENRICHED VEGETAL SAMPLES WITH BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS.