Comparative Study of the Structural Properties, Color, Bioactive Compounds Content and Antioxidant Capacity of Aerated Gelatin Gels Enriched with Cryoconcentrated Blueberry Juice during Storage

Shell Formulation in Soft Gelatin Capsules: Design and Characterization

Soft gelatin capsules (SGCs) are the most widely used pharmaceutical form after tablets. The active components, active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), or nutrients are dissolved, dispersed, or suspended in a liquid or semisolid fill, which is covered with a gelatin shell. Several factors can modify the properties of the gelatin shell and subsequently affect their operative handling during manufacturing process and the stability of the soft gelatin capsules. Three elements appear to be crucial: the shell formulation (type and content of the different components such as gelatins-source, extraction method-plasticizers, or additives); the manufacture and storage conditions (temperature, humidity, light) as well as the interactions between fill-shell formulas. Mechanical and thermal analysis arise as straightforward but highly useful tools to monitor the properties of the gelatin shell. This review provides an updated overview on the shell formulation and design. Additionally, it presents the uses of mechanical and thermal techniques to characterize and evaluate the impact of different parameters on the gelatin behavior over the production and stability of these pharmaceutical forms. This will help to detect changes that are yet not visible by visual inspection ensuring a suitable finished product over its shelf-life.

Investigation of 3D printing of toddler foods with special shape and function based on fenugreek gum and flaxseed protein

The practicability of using corn and flaxseed protein as printing inks for manufacture of printed products specifically designed for toddlers as a dysphagia diet with high precision and special shapes with addition of fenugreek gum (FGG) was investigated. 3D printing was used to process grains and dysphagia-compatible food (corn) into a dietary product with attractive appearance which was also easy to swallow. Rheological measurements shown that appropriate amount of flaxseed protein (FP, 0-10 %) can reduce the stickiness and yield strength of printing material. Based on FTIR measurements, FP weakened the hydrogen bond strength of inks, but it was still an important gradient for the formation of the ink suitable for precision 3D printing. The TPA results shown that the addition of FP (0-10 %) remarkably reduced both the stickiness and hardness of the ink. These results shown that compared with the control group, materials with FGG additions possessed higher printing accuracy and self-supporting ability. Ink with 5 % FP content exhibited the best printability and swallowability, while ink with 10 % FP content had the lowest viscosity and hardness, but it was not suitable for 3D printing. 3D printing of objects printed using Ink-C (5%FP and 0.8 %FGG) showed high support characteristic and attractive appearance. According to the international IDDSI testing standards, Ink-C (5%FP and 0.8 %FGG), Ink-E (15%FP and 0.8 %FGG), and Ink-F (20%FP and 0.8 %FGG) were defined as level 5-minced and moist foods.

Mechanical Properties, Microstructure, and In Vitro Digestion of Transglutaminase-Crosslinked Whey Protein and Potato Protein Hydrolysate Composite Gels

The production of animal protein usually leads to higher carbon emissions than that of plant protein. To reduce carbon emissions, the partial replacement of animal protein with plant protein has attracted extensive attention; however, little is known about using plant protein hydrolysates as a substitute. The potential application of 2 h-alcalase hydrolyzed potato protein hydrolysate (PPH) to displace whey protein isolate (WPI) during gel formation was demonstrated in this study. The effect of the ratios (8/5, 9/4, 10/3, 11/2, 12/1, and 13/0) of WPI to PPH on the mechanical properties, microstructure, and digestibility of composite WPI/PPH gels was investigated. Increasing the WPI ratio could improve the storage modulus (G') and loss modulus (G″) of composite gels. The springiness of gels with the WPH/PPH ratio of 10/3 and 8/5 was 0.82 and 0.36 times higher than that of the control (WPH/PPH ratio of 13/0) (p < 0.05). In contrast, the hardness of the control samples was 1.82 and 2.38 times higher than that of gels with the WPH/PPH ratio of 10/3 and 8/5 (p < 0.05). According to the International Organization for Standardization of Dysphagia Diet (IDDSI) testing, the composite gels belonged to food level 4 in the IDDSI framework. This suggested that composite gels could be acceptable to people with swallowing difficulties. Confocal laser scanning microscopy and scanning electron microscopy images illustrated that composite gels with a higher ratio of PPH displayed thicker gel skeletons and porous networks in the matrix. The water-holding capacity and swelling ratio of gels with the WPH/PPH ratio of 8/5 decreased by 12.4% and 40.8% when compared with the control (p < 0.05). Analysis of the swelling rate with the power law model indicated that water diffusion in composite gels belonged to non-Fickian transport. The results of amino acid release suggested that PPH improved the digestion of composite gels during the intestinal stage. The free amino group content of gels with the WPH/PPH ratio of 8/5 increased by 29.5% compared with the control (p < 0.05). Our results suggested that replacing WPI with PPH at the ratio of 8/5 could be the optimal selection for composite gels. The findings indicated that PPH could be used as a substitute for whey protein to develop new products for different consumers. Composite gels could deliver nutrients such as vitamins and minerals to develop snack foods for elders and children.

Impact of Apricot Pulp Concentration on Cylindrical Gel 3D Printing

The process of 3D food printing is a rapidly growing field that involves the use of specialized 3D printers to produce food items with complex shapes and textures. This technology allows the creation of customized, nutritionally balanced meals on demand. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of apricot pulp content on printability. Additionally, the degradation of bioactive compounds of gels before and after printing was evaluated to analyze the effect of the process. For this proposal, physicochemical properties, extrudability, rheology, image analysis, Texture Profile Analysis (TPA), and bioactive compounds content were evaluated. The rheological parameters lead to higher mechanical strength and, thus, a decrease in elastic behavior before and after 3D printing as the pulp content increases. An increase in strength was observed when the pulp content increased; thus, sample gels with 70% apricot pulp were more rigid and presented better buildability (were more stable in their dimensions). On the other hand, a significant (p < 0.05) degradation of total carotenoid content after printing was observed in all samples. From the results obtained, it can be said that the gel with 70% apricot pulp food ink was the best sample in terms of printability and stability.

Effects of Cryoconcentrated Blueberry Juice as Functional Ingredient for Preparation of Commercial Confectionary Hydrogels

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.

Centrifugal Filter-Assisted Block Freeze Crystallization Applied to Blueberry Juice

The impact of centrifugal-filter assisted block freeze crystallization (CFBFC) on the physicochemical parameters, total phenolic content (TPC), total anthocyanin content (TAC), and total flavonoid content (TFC), antioxidant activity (AA) and process parameters applied to blueberry juice was studied. Additionally, CFBFC was contrasted with gravitational BFC (GBFC) and centrifugal BFC (CBFC) techniques. For CFBFC process, the solutes values were ≈35.9 °Brix (fresh juice ≈13.8 °Brix), with a very dark red/purple color. Moreover, the bioactive components values presented a significant increase of 2.1, 2.0, 1.8, and 3.1 times compared to the initial TPC, TAC, TFC, and AA values, respectively, and these values were higher than GBFC and CBFC techniques. For efficiency, percentage of concentrate, and solute yield, CFBFC showed values close to 86%, 81%, and 0.9 (kg/kg), respectively, which were higher values than GBFC (48%, 38%, and 0.5 (kg/kg)) and CBFC (79%, 68%, and 0.7 (kg/kg)). Therefore, this research offers new benefits with the addition of the filter in the centrifugal BFC, and thus, CFBFC offers an advantage due to the better separation than GBFC and CBFC, since the filter can be designated as a second separation stage, and only one cycle is necessary to obtain high quality properties in the final solution.

Effect of Freeze Crystallization on Quality Properties of Two Endemic Patagonian Berries Juices: Murta (Ugni molinae) and Arrayan (Luma apiculata)

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.