The role of bacterial nanocellulose mats encapsulated with cinnamaldehyde on chilled meat preservation

Superabsorbent, antibacterial, and antioxidant nanocellulose aerogels: Preparation, characterization, and application in beef preservation

Herein, we prepared a new aerogel-based preservation pad using soy hull nanocellulose (SHNC), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), whey protein isolate (WPI), and cinnamon essential oil (CEO) as raw materials. The physicochemicals of the aerogel preservation pads were studied, and their effects on beef preservation were evaluated. The results showed that the aerogel monomers were crosslinked by hydrogen, ester bonds, and electrostatic interactions in the aerogels, and there were three-dimensional pores in the aerogels. Meanwhile, SHNC/PVA/WPI/CEO-3 (aerogel prepared using 2 g of SHNC) exhibited excellent mechanical properties (elongation: 251 %; tensile strength: 33.97 MPa) and super-high absorption performance. Additionally, the aerogel displayed excellent antioxidant and antibacterial properties (83.74 %). The preservation experiment showed that, at 4 °C, the aerogel preservation pad inhibited the growth and reproduction of bacteria on the surface of beef, inhibited lipid oxidation, effectively preserved the color of beef, and extended the shelf life of beef from 4 to 12 days.

The Beneficial Role of Polysaccharide Hydrocolloids in Meat Products: A Review

Polysaccharide hydrocolloids have garnered increasing attention from consumers, experts, and food processing industries due to their advantages of abundant resources, favorable thickening properties, emulsification stability, biocompatibility, biodegradability, and high acceptance as food additives. This review focuses on the application of polysaccharide hydrocolloids and their beneficial roles in meat products by focusing on several commonly used polysaccharides (i.e., cellulose, chitosan, starch, sodium alginate, pectin, and carrageenan). Firstly, the recent advancements of polysaccharide hydrocolloids used in meat products are briefly introduced, along with their structure and potential application prospects. Then, the beneficial roles of polysaccharide hydrocolloids in meat products are comprehensively summarized and highlighted, including retarding lipid and protein oxidation, enhancing nutritional properties, improving texture and color quality, providing antibacterial activity, monitoring freshness, acting as a cryoprotectant, improving printability, and ensuring security. Finally, the challenges and opportunities of polysaccharide hydrocolloids in meat products are also introduced.

Novel cinnamon essential oil-bacterial cellulose microcapsules for enhanced preservation of prefabricated meat

Bacterial cellulose, a naturally porous nanomaterial, shows significant potential in encapsulation and sustained-release applications. However, effective methods to construct bacterial cellulose microcapsules (BCM) are lacking, resulting in low embedding rates and poor slow-release effects. This study presents a novel and efficient BCM preparation strategy using mercerization to embed cinnamon essential oil (CEO). The CEO-BCM system was evaluated for its efficacy in preserving prefabricated meat. Results demonstrated that BCM, embedded with CEO through mercerization, achieved an embedding rate of 94.9 % and an average particle size of 63.7 μm. Mercerization transformed BC crystalline into cellulose type II, densifying the BCM structure, while intermolecular hydrogen bonding between BCM and CEO enhanced the stability of CEO-BCM. Release kinetics analysis indicated that CEO release was primarily diffusion-driven (Peppas-Sahlin model) with sustained release performance up to 20 days. Additionally, CEO-BCM exhibited excellent long-term antibacterial (≥81.2 % within 20 days), antioxidant, and thermal stability, effectively extending the shelf life of prefabricated meat products from 5 to 10 days. The developed BCM construction strategy not only addresses the challenges of direct BCM preparation and the limitations in core embedding and controlled release, but also enhances the stability of the CEO. This advancement further expands the application areas of bacterial cellulose (BC), and the prepared CEO-BCM system holds significant potential for food preservation applications.

Preparation of nanocellulose light porous material adsorbed with tannic acid and its application in fresh-keeping pad

This study fabricated nanocellulose lightweight porous material (TOCNF-G-LPM-TA) as absorbent fresh-keeping pad for meat products, using TEMPO-oxidized cellulose nanofibril (TOCNF) and gelatin as structural skeleton and tannic acid (TA) as antibacterial component of TOCNF lightweight porous material (TOCNF-G-LPM). The adsorption kinetics, capacity and mechanism of TOCNF-G-LPM in different initial concentrations of TA solutions were investigated, the antioxidant and antibacterial properties of TOCNF-G-LPM-TA and its fresh-keeping effect on refrigerated pork at 4 ℃ were studied. Due to strong hydrogen bonding and porous structure, TOCNF-G-LPM exhibited excellent TA adsorption ability (230 mg/g) conforming with pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm models. TA endowed TOCNF-G-LPM with good antioxidant and antibacterial activities. According to changes in appearance, pH and TVB-N values of pork during storage at 4 ℃, TOCNF-G-LPM-TA effectively extended the shelf life of refrigerated pork. This work provides a facile method for preparing nanocellulose based absorbent fresh-keeping pads.

Paper-based material with hydrophobic and antimicrobial properties: Advanced packaging materials for food applications

The environmental challenges posed by plastic pollution have prompted the exploration of eco-friendly alternatives to disposable plastic packaging and utensils. Paper-based materials, derived from renewable resources such as wood pulp, non-wood pulp (bamboo pulp, straw pulp, reed pulp, etc.), and recycled paper fibers, are distinguished by their recyclability and biodegradability, making them promising substitutes in the field of plastic food packaging. Despite their merits, challenges like porosity, hydrophilicity, limited barrier properties, and a lack of functionality have restricted their packaging potential. To address these constraints, researchers have introduced antimicrobial agents, hydrophobic substances, and other functional components to improve both physical and functional properties. This enhancement has resulted in notable improvements in food preservation outcomes in real-world scenarios. This paper offers a comprehensive review of recent progress in hydrophobic antimicrobial paper-based materials. In addition to outlining the characteristics and functions of commonly used antimicrobial substances in food packaging, it consolidates the current research landscape and preparation techniques for hydrophobic paper. Furthermore, the paper explores the practical applications of hydrophobic antimicrobial paper-based materials in agricultural produce, meat, and seafood, as well as ready-to-eat food packaging. Finally, challenges in production, application, and recycling processes are outlined to ensure safety and efficacy, and prospects for the future development of antimicrobial hydrophobic paper-based materials are discussed. Overall, the emergence of hydrophobic antimicrobial paper-based materials stands out as a robust alternative to plastic food packaging, offering a compelling solution with superior food preservation capabilities. In the future, paper-based materials with antimicrobial and hydrophobic functionalities are expected to further enhance food safety as promising packaging materials.

Antibacterial Activity and Mechanism of Oxidized Bacterial Nanocellulose with Different Carboxyl Content

Oxidized bacterial nanocellulose (OBC) is reported to prevent microbial growth, but its antibacterial characteristics and mechanism are still unclear. Here, the antibacterial mechanism of OBC is explored by detecting and assessing the interaction of OBC with different carboxyl content on Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. The results show that OBC has strong antibacterial activity and antibiofilm activity against S. aureus and E. coli, which is positively correlated with the carboxyl content of OBC. After OBC treatment, the bacteria adhesion is inhibited and the cell membrane is destroyed leading to increased permeability. Further investigation reveals that the concentration of cyclic diguanosine monophosphate (c-di-GMP) that induced biofilm formation is significantly decreased to 1.81 pmol mg^-1 after OBC treatment. In addition, OBC inactivates mature biofilms, with inactivation rates up to 79.3%. This study suggests that OBC has excellent antibacterial and antiadhesion properties, which can increase the cell membrane permeability and inhibit c-di-GMP formation. In addition, OBC also has a strong inactivation effect on mature biofilm, which can be used as an effective antibiofilm agent.