Meat quality, free fatty acid concentration, and oxidative stability of pork from animals fed diets containing different sources of selenium

This study evaluates the effect of the source of dietary selenium supplementation (organic versus mineral) and the combined effect of organic selenium and vitamin E on the fatty acid composition and lipolysis in pork intramuscular fat and other meat quality characteristics such as drip loss and lipid stability. Higher vitamin E deposition, lower drip loss, and higher stability against oxidation were detected in muscle from pigs fed organic selenium. Also higher proportion of free fatty acids was observed in intramuscular fat from pigs fed organic selenium than those fed inorganic selenium, being these mainly coming from neutral lipid fraction. In addition, the inclusion of vitamin E in the diet enhanced such effect. Dietary organic selenium also increased Δ9-desaturase and elongase indexes and C18:1n−9 concentration. A related decrease of C18:0 concentration was also observed. Described differences in the lipid fraction composition could affect sensory characteristics of meat and meat products.

Novel bioactive peptides from enzymatic hydrolysate of Sardinelle (Sardinella aurita) muscle proteins hydrolysed by Bacillus subtilis A26 proteases

Sardinelle protein hydrolysate (SPH), prepared by treatment with Bacillus subtilis A26 proteases, was found to exhibit antibacterial, antioxidant and ACE-inhibitory activities. SPH, with a degree of hydrolysis of 4%, was fractionated by size exclusion chromatography on a Sephadex G-25 into five major fractions (F1-F5). F2, which exhibited the highest antibacterial and ACE-inhibitory activities, and F4, which exhibited the highest antibacterial and antioxidant activities, were further fractionated by reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and then analysed using nano-ESI-LC-MS/MS to identify the sequences of peptides. Eight peptides were identified in the sub-fraction F2-A, nine peptides in the sub-fraction F4-B, and 45 peptides in F4-C. Identified peptides were found to share sequences with previously described bioactive peptides based on Biopep database. The results of this study suggest that SPH is a good source of natural bioactive peptides. Hence, it can be used as a potential ingredient in nutraceutical field.

Effect of cooking and in vitro digestion on the antioxidant activity of dry-cured ham by-products

Dry-cured ham by-products have been traditionally used in Mediterranean household cooking of broths and stews. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of cooking treatments and in vitro gastrointestinal digestion on the antioxidant activity of natural peptides found in bones from Spanish dry-cured hams. The antioxidant activity was tested using five different assays and results demonstrated that cooking using conventional household methods increased the antioxidant activity of ham by-products when assessed using different antioxidant assays with the exception of the ABTS radical scavenging measurement assay. Simulated gastrointestinal digestion showed no significant effect on the antioxidant activity of ham by-products and antioxidant activity decreased when assessed using the ORAC and β-carotene bleaching assays. Analysis by MALDI-TOF MS revealed a considerable breakdown of peptides due to the action of gastrointestinal enzymes, mainly in samples cooked at 100°C for 1h. In addition, 459 peptides derived from 57 proteins were identified and quantified using mass spectrometry in tandem, evidencing that peptides derived from collagen protein were responsible for the differences in antioxidant activities observed between the uncooked and cooked samples after digestion. The results show the potential of dry-cured ham bones as a source of antioxidant peptides that retain their bioactivity after household cooking preparations and gastrointestinal digestion.

Beneficial effects of fermented sardinelle protein hydrolysates on hypercaloric diet induced hyperglycemia, oxidative stress and deterioration of kidney function in wistar rats

This study investigated the potential effects of fermented sardinelle protein hydrolysates (FSPHs) obtained by two proteolytic bacteria, Bacillus subtilis A26 (FSPH-A26) and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens An6 (FSPH-An6), on hypercaloric diet (HCD) induced hyperglycemia and oxidative stress in rats. Effects of FSPHs on blood glucose level, glucose tolerance, α-amylase activity and hepatic glycogen content were investigated, as well as their effect on the oxidative stress state. Biochemical findings revealed that, while undigested sardinelle proteins did not exhibit hypoglycemic activity, oral administration of FSPHs to HCD-fed rats reduced significantly α-amylase activity as well as glycemia and hepatic glycogen levels. Further, the treatment with FSPHs improved the redox status by decreasing the levels of lipid peroxidation products and increasing the activities of the antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase) and the level of glutathione in the liver and kidneys, as compared to those of HCD-fed rats. FSPHs were also found to exert significant protective effects on liver and kidney functions, evidenced by a marked decrease in alkaline phosphatase activity and a modulation of creatinine and uric acid contents. These results indicated the beneficial effect of FSPHs on the prevention from hyperglycemia and oxidative stress.

Effect of cooking and simulated gastrointestinal digestion on the activity of generated bioactive peptides in aged beef meat

Ageing is widely used in the meat industry to improve tenderness mainly as a result of the breakdown of muscular proteins through the action of endopeptidases during storage time.

Analysis of Nitrite and Nitrate in Foods: Overview of Chemical, Regulatory and Analytical Aspects

In this chapter, several factors that should be considered for selecting and developing suitable analytical methods for determining nitrite/nitrate are presented. Nitrite and nitrate occurrence and suitability are a controversial issue. Nitrite is an approved additive considered a foremost curing ingredient for the preservation of meat products. Nitrate is a natural constituent of the human diet that, however, raises fears for its suggested potential harmfulness related to carcinogenesis and environmental contamination. Chemical, regulatory, and analytical aspects are discussed in the light of the need to obtain reliable data of nitrite and nitrate for law enforcement purposes, exposure estimates, and investigation of their physiological role in the human body. In addition, current metrological aspects to ensure the "fitness for purpose" of the selected method are suggested and discussed.

Distinct fatty acid composition of some edible by-products from bovines fed high or low silage diets

In the present study, it was hypothesized that the incorporation of fatty acids is distinct among ruminant tissues and that it could be modulated by diet composition. To test this hypothesis, fatty acid composition, including conjugated linoleic acid isomers, of the most relevant beef by-products (brain, heart, kidney, liver, pancreas and tongue) from young bulls those fed distinct silage levels was assessed. Data indicated a large variation in fatty acid profile and conjugated linoleic acid composition among edible by-products. The most abundant fatty acids were C16:0 (kidney), C18:0 (heart and liver) and C18:1 c9 (brain, pancreas and tongue) followed by C20:4 n-6, except in brain (C22:6 n-3 predominates). Brain, as shown by principal component analysis, presents a distinct fatty acid composition compared to the other beef by-products analysed. In addition, high silage diet relative to low silage diet promoted an increase of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, t11, t13 and t11, c13 conjugated linoleic acid in heart, kidney, liver and pancreas. Overall, the data suggested that beef by-products had, in general, high contents of cholesterol, saturated fatty acid and trans fatty acid, as well as high levels of conjugated linoleic acid. Therefore, from a nutritional point of view they are recommended only in small amounts as part of a balanced diet.

Lipids of pork meat as affected by various cooking techniques / Modificaciones de los lípidos de carne de cerdo en función de su guiso

The effects of different cooking techniques on the lipids of pork meat were evaluated. The assayed cooking techniques were deep-frying (DF), shallow-frying (SF), roasting (RO) and boiling (BO). Modi fication of the roasting meat due to reheating in a microwave oven after 24 h at 4 °C (MW), was also studied. In DF and SF significant increases were found in the lipid content (13.7 and 16.7 g/100 g of dry basis, respectively) and in the nun-polar lipids (11.2 and 14.2 g/100 g of dry basis, respectively) due to the absorption of the oil used in these cooking treatments. The main variations in the fatty acid composition of phospholipids and non-polar lipids were observed in the polyunsaturated fatty acid fraction. There was an increase in the content of free fatty acids (SFA, MUFA, PUFA) after MW, BO and RO. By contrast, free fatty acid content in DF and SF was similar to the content of initial raw meat. MW showed the greatest degradation of the phospholipid fraction, with a significant decline in phosphatidyl ethanolamine. All cooking treatments produced an increase in lipid oxidation, this be ing higher in RO and MW treatments.

Muscle Foods: Water, Structure and Functionality

Main constituents of skeletal muscle are water, protein, fat, carbohydrate and other soluble compounds. The amount of water is usually found in the range 70-80%. Part of this water is found in free form while the rest is bound to proteins, especially myofibrillar proteins, through charged and polar groups. The amount of immobilised water depends on the available space within the myofibrillar structure and, in fact, the volume of myofibrils is decisive to the water-binding capacity of the muscle. Some variations exist between muscles due to the types of muscle fibres, degree of fibre contraction and pre-rigor pH. The water retention will also depend on the ultimate pH reached after rigor mortis and this will have a strong influence on the activity of muscle enzymes involved in proteolysis and lipolysis during ageing and further processing. Variations may be also expected between animal or fish species and age at slaughter. It is of primary importance to understand metabolic processes in post-mortem muscle as they will directly influence water-binding and thus, the relative amount of drip loss.

ACE-Inhibitory and Antioxidant Activities of Peptide Fragments Obtained from Tomato Processing By-Products Fermented Using Bacillus subtilis: Effect of Amino Acid Composition and Peptides Molecular Mass Distribution

The effects of amino acid composition and peptide molecular mass on ACE-inhibitory and antioxidant activities of protein fragments obtained from tomato waste fermented using Bacillus subtilis were evaluated. The addition of B. subtilis increased the relative amounts of aromatic and positively-charged amino acids which have been described to influence the biological activities of peptide fragments. IC₅₀ values of hydrolysates for ACE-inhibitory and 2, 2'-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging activities were found to be 1.5 and 8.2 mg/mL, respectively. Size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) pattern of the hydrolysate indicated the breakdown of parent proteins to smaller peptides with molecular weights mainly below 1400 Da. MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analysis revealed that the highest ACE-inhibitory activity was due to peptides showing molecular mass range 500-800 Da, while the most active antioxidant peptides were found to be mainly at the two different peptide weight ranges 500-800 Da and 1200-1500 Da.

Hypolipidemic, antiobesity and cardioprotective effects of sardinelle meat flour and its hydrolysates in high-fat and fructose diet fed Wistar rats

AIMS

The present study aims to evaluate the antiobesity, hypolipidemic and cardioprotective effects of fermented sardinelle (Sardinella aurita) protein hydrolysates (FSPHs) produced with two proteolytic bacteria, Bacillus subtilis A26 (FSPH-A26) and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens An6 (FSPH-An6).

MAIN METHODS

Wistar rats were fed during 10weeks a standard laboratory diet, a high caloric diet (HCD) and a HCD coupled with the oral administration of sardinelle meat flour (SMF) or FSPHs.

KEY FINDINGS

HCD caused hyperlipidemia and increased body weight (BW). The daily oral administration of FSPHs or SMF reduced the total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) serum levels, and increased the level of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c). Nevertheless, FSPHs were found to be more efficient than SMF. FSPHs also lowered hepatic TC and TG content and decreased the pancreatic lipase activity. Further, the administration of FSPHs or SMF decreased the BW gain, the food intake and the relative epididymal adipose tissue weight. FSPHs exhibited a potent cardioprotective effect against heart attack, which was demonstrated by returning atherogenic indexes to their normal levels and the conservation of standard histological structure of the heart and aorta.

SIGNIFICANCE

The overall results indicate that FSPHs contained bioactive peptides which significantly attenuated hyperlipidemia, and might reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in rats fed HCD.

Effect of dietary selenium source (organic vs. mineral) and muscle pH on meat quality characteristics of pigs

This study evaluates the effect of organic (Se‐enriched yeast; SeY) versus inorganic selenium (sodium selenite; SeS) supplementation and the different response of selenium source according to muscle pH on pork meat quality characteristics. Pigs (n = 30) were fed the Se‐supplemented diets (0.3 mg/kg) for 65 days. Neither electric conductivity (EC) nor drip loss were affected by the selenium source. The SeY group had lower TBARS in muscle samples after day 7 of refrigerated storage and higher a* values on days 1 and 7 than the SeS group. The effect of dietary selenium source on some meat quality characteristics was affected by muscle pH. Hence, as the muscle pH increases, the drip loss decreases but this effect is more marked with the dietary organic Se enrichment. Muscle pH seems to modulate the action of selenium in pork, especially some meat characteristics such as drip loss.