Explore the vast range of titles available.

Coffee capsules market is on the rise as it allows access to a wide selection of coffee, differing in taste and brand. However, few data about the chemical characterization of the capsule-brewed coffee aroma are available. In this work, an untargeted approach using headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) coupled to gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and combined to chemometrics was performed to study and compare aroma profile from 65 capsule-brewed espresso coffees (ECs) commercialized by five of the most representative brands in Italy. Volatile profiles obtained from ECs were subjected to multivariate statistical analysis, which generally did not show a significant variability among coffees belonging to the same brand, except for those modified after the addition of specific flavor additives or aromatic substances (such as caramel, chocolate, etc.). Similarities may be related to the starting coffee brew or the processing method, which is likely the same for each individual brand. Additionally, partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) showed that capsules from a specific brand contain the highest concentration of pyrazines, thus characterized by an intense and characteristic aroma, and a stronger note than those from the other brands. This study supports that the chemical analysis in conjunction with chemometric tools is a useful approach for assessing flavor quality, even if the need remains to identify volatile markers of high-quality beverages.

Perennial grains provide various ecosystem services compared to the annual counterparts thanks to their extensive root system and permanent soil cover. However, little is known about the evolution and diversification of perennial grains rhizosphere and its ecological functions over time. In this study, a suite of -OMICSs - metagenomics, enzymomics, metabolomics and lipidomics - was used to compare the rhizosphere environment of four perennial wheat lines at the first and fourth year of growth in comparison with an annual durum wheat cultivar and the parental species Thinopyrum intermedium . We hypothesized that wheat perenniality has a greater role in shaping the rhizobiome composition, biomass, diversity, and activity than plant genotypes because perenniality affects the quality and quantity of C input – mainly root exudates – hence modulating the plant-microbes crosstalk. In support of this hypothesis, the continuous supply of sugars in the rhizosphere along the years created a favorable environment for microbial growth which is reflected in a higher microbial biomass and enzymatic activity. Moreover, modification in the rhizosphere metabolome and lipidome over the years led to changes in the microbial community composition favoring the coexistence of more diverse microbial taxa, increasing plant tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses. Despite the dominance of the perenniality effect, our data underlined that the OK72 line rhizobiome distinguished from the others by the increase in abundance of Pseudomonas spp., most of which are known as potential beneficial microorganisms, identifying this line as a suitable candidate for the study and selection of new perennial wheat lines.

Recent research has increasingly focused on the health benefits of dietary fibre (DF), including improved digestion, blood glucose and cholesterol regulation, satiety, and prebiotic effects, which depend on the specific DF type. Traditional gravimetric methods (e.g. Van Soest and AOAC) quantify DF fractions but lack molecular or monosaccharide detail. Advanced chromatographic methods offer more insights but require extensive sample preparation. To address this limitation, the study developed a method using proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ( 1 H NMR) spectroscopy to directly analyse DF hydrolysed fractions (mainly pectin, hemicellulose, and cellulose) without the need for derivatisation or neutralisation. It provides detailed structural insights, including the monosaccharide composition, carbohydrate modifications (methylation and acetylation), and the degradation products. The method was validated and then applied to hydrolysed DF fractions obtained from the AOAC process. 1 H NMR shows a comparable monosaccharide distribution to GC-MS, but yields higher recoveries, particularly for uronic acids. In addition, it offers faster sample preparation and acquisition, making it a powerful tool for comprehensive DF analysis. Dietary fibre (DF) analysis is crucial for understanding its health benefits, yet traditional methods lack molecular detail. Here, the authors develop a 1H NMR spectroscopy method to directly analyze hydrolysed DF fractions with high recovery and fast preparation while revealing detailed structural information including monosaccharide composition, carbohydrate modifications and the degradation products.

By-products from the fruit supply chain, especially seeds/kernels, have shown great potential to be valorised, due to their high content of macronutrients, such as lipids, protein, and fibre. A mild enzymatic assisted extraction (EAE) involving the use of a protease was tested to evaluate the feasibility of a cascade approach to fractionate the main fruit by-products components. Protease from Bacillus licheniformis (the enzyme used in the AOAC 991.43 official method for dietary fibre quantification) was used, and besides protein, the conditions of hydrolysis (60 °C, neutral pH, overnight) allowed us to dissolve a portion of soluble fibres, which was then separated from the solubilized peptide fraction through ethanol precipitation. Good protein extraction yields, in the range 35–93%, were obtained. The soluble fibre extraction yield ranged from 1.6% to 71% depending on the by-product, suggesting its applicability only for certain substrates, and it was found to be negatively correlated with the molecular weight of the fibre. The monosaccharide composition of the soluble fibres extracted was also diverse. Galacturonic acid was present in a low amount, indicating that pectin was not efficiently extracted. However, a predominance of arabinose and galactose monomers was detected in many fractions, indicating the isolation of a fruit soluble fibre portion with potential similarity with arabinogalactans and gum arabic, opening up perspectives for technological applications. The residual solid pellet obtained after protease assisted extraction was found to be an excellent fibre-rich substrate, suitable for being subjected to more “hard” processing (e.g., sequential pectin and hemicellulose extraction) with the objective to derive other fractions with potential great added economic value.

A survey was conducted to determine the content of cyclopropane fatty acids (CPFAs) and ω-cyclohexyl fatty acids (CHFAs) by using gas chromatography- mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) techniques in various meat samples from different species, including commercial samples and complex and thermally processed products (i.e., Bolognese sauce). The CPFAs concentration (as the sum of two isomers, namely dihydrosterculic acid and lactobacillic acid) in bovine meat fat (ranging between 70 and 465 mg/kg fat) was positively related to a silage-based diet, and therefore, they are potential biomarkers for monitoring the feeding system of cattle. CHFAs, such as 11-cyclohexylundecanoic and 13-cyclohexyltridecanoic acids, were only found in lipid profiles from ruminant species, and a linear trend was observed in their content, together with iso-branched fatty acids (iso-BCFAs) deriving from ruminal fermentation, as a function of bovine meat percentage in both raw and cooked minced meat. Thus, CHFAs are potential biomarkers for the assurance of the meat species and, combined with iso-BCFAs, of the beef/pork ratio even in complex meat matrices. The proposed approaches are valuable novel tools for meat authentication, which is pivotal in the management of meat quality, safety, and traceability.

One of the most difficult issues in the juice industry is to manufacture juices where processing processes minimise the impact on the native characteristics of the fruits. In this study, high-pressure technology was used on whole apple fruits in order to evaluate the effect on the juice production. Two varieties, cv. Limoncella and cv. Pink Lady, were considered. Preliminarily, the fruits were subjected to different pressures, and histological as well as pomological measurements were taken in order to identify the best treatment condition, which was established to be 600 MPa for 3 min. Juice samples were then characterised by measuring the colour, viscosity, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and total phenolic content (TPC). The storage colour stability of the juices for both varieties showed not significant L* values between the untreated and pre-treated fruits. Juices obtained from pre-treated fruits had a viscosity significantly higher than that obtained from untreated ones. Interestingly, the TPC of high-pressure processing (HPP) pre-treated juice resulted in being significantly higher compared to the untreated ones. The HPP pre-treatment can be considered as a commercial application to modulate some quality standards for apple juice production.

An untargeted Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy-based metabolomics approach was applied as a first attempt to explore the metabolome of pigs treated with antibiotics. The final goal was to investigate the possibility of discriminating between antibiotic-treated (TX group) and untreated pigs (CTRL group), with the further perspective of identifying the authentication tools for antibiotic-free pork supply chains. In particular, 41 samples of pig liver were subjected to a biphasic extraction to recover both the polar and the non-polar metabolites, and the 1H NMR spectroscopy analysis was performed on the two separate extracts. Unsupervised (principal component analysis) and supervised (orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis) multivariate statistical analysis of 1H NMR spectra data in the range 0–9 ppm provided metabolomic fingerprinting useful for the discrimination of pig livers based on the antibiotic treatment to which they were exposed. Moreover, within the signature patterns, significant discriminating metabolites were identified among carbohydrates, choline and derivatives, amino acids and some lipid-class molecules. The encouraging findings of this exploratory study showed the feasibility of the untargeted metabolomic approach as a novel strategy in the authentication framework of pork supply chains and open a new horizon for a more in-depth investigation.

Cyclopropenoid fatty acids (CPEFA), found in oilseeds from Malvaceae and Sterculiaceae, have been shown to interfere with the endogenous synthesis of several bioactive lipids of dairy fat, such as cis-9, trans-11 18:2 and cis-9 18:1, by inhibiting Δ9-desaturase. No previous study has reported the presence of sterculic acid in animal fat and its incorporation in tissues after its administration, due to the lack of a proper methodology. In the present research, a GC-MS method based on cold base derivatization to fatty acids methylesters was developed to determine CPEFA in ewe milk triglycerides, after infusing sterculic acid (0.5 g/day) to six lactating ewes. An alternative derivatization based on silanyzation followed by GC-MS analysis was also tested, showing its possible applicability when CPEFA are present in the form of free fatty acids. Sterculic acid was detected in ewe milk triglycerides, demonstrating its incorporation from the bloodstream into milk by the mammary gland. The mean transfer rate represented 8.0 ± 1.0% of the daily dose. This study provides, for the first time, the presence of sterculic acid in milk fat, supporting the importance of understanding its occurrence in vivo and encouraging further research to determine whether it can be present in foods, such as dairy products, obtained under practical farming conditions.

Cyclopropane fatty acids (CPFAs) are unusual fatty acids of microbial origin, recently detected in milk and dairy products. CPFAs have been demonstrated to be interesting molecular markers for authentication of dairy products obtained without ensiled feeds. Moreover, they can also be recognized as a new secondary component of human diet. Information is lacking on the presence of cyclic fatty acids in other food sources. Cyclopropane fatty acids have been detected by GC-MS analysis in cheese and other animal fats in concentration ranging from 200 to 1000 mg/kg fat, but in some cases, the complex fatty acid profile and the possible presence of interfering peaks make the separation not straightforward and the quantification uneasy. Therefore, a new reliable 1H NMR method was developed to detect and measure CPFA content in different foods of animal origin, based on the detection of the characteristic signals of cyclopropane ring. The 1H NMR (600 MHz) method showed detection limits comparable with those of full scan GC-MS, and it allowed the identification and quantitation of the cyclopropane fatty acids in different foods.

Recent research has increasingly focused on the health benefits of dietary fibre (DF), including improved digestion, blood glucose and cholesterol regulation, satiety, and prebiotic effects, which depend on the specific DF type. Traditional gravimetric methods (e.g. Van Soest and AOAC) quantify DF fractions but lack molecular or monosaccharide detail. Advanced chromatographic methods offer more insights but require extensive sample preparation. To address this limitation, the study developed a method using proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ( H NMR) spectroscopy to directly analyse DF hydrolysed fractions (mainly pectin, hemicellulose, and cellulose) without the need for derivatisation or neutralisation. It provides detailed structural insights, including the monosaccharide composition, carbohydrate modifications (methylation and acetylation), and the degradation products. The method was validated and then applied to hydrolysed DF fractions obtained from the AOAC process. H NMR shows a comparable monosaccharide distribution to GC-MS, but yields higher recoveries, particularly for uronic acids. In addition, it offers faster sample preparation and acquisition, making it a powerful tool for comprehensive DF analysis.