Browsing by Author "Hached, Hanine"
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- Extraction and analysis of plant volatilesPublication . Hached, Hanine; Carocho, Márcio; Vaz, Josiana A.; Rezouga, FerielAs worldwide population is growing, the demand on food increases exponentially, which results in food overproduction, food spoilage, and in foodborne diseases. This issue has arisen many concerns related to public health, economy, and the environment, which led to exhaustive research on possible solutions to minimize costs and ensure safer food products that respond to consumers’ demand for clean-label foods with less collateral damages on the environment. Essential oils (E.Os) and volatiles are plant secondary metabolites and are considered as promising food preservatives seen their remarkable biological activities including antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiproliferative, and anti-inflammatory activities. E.Os from three aromatic plants: eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus Labill.), peppermint (Mentha x piperita L.), and pine (Pinus pinaster) were extracted by hydro distillation (HD) and microwave-assisted hydro distillation (MAHD), both optimized with response surface methodology (RSM), which generally showed higher yields in E.Os obtained with MAHD influenced primarily by solid/liquid ratio, with eucalyptus giving the highest yield from the three studied plants. Chromatographic identification resulted in high amounts of monoterpenes, followed by sesquiterpenes in both eucalyptus and peppermint E.Os, while pine E.O was proven to be richer in diterpenes. These volatile compounds led to interesting bioactive properties in all of the studied E.Os, especially the ones extracted using hydro distillation. The extracts showed an inhibitory capacity against the majority of the tested bacterial strains, specifically against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), which is a multi- resistant bacteria. Also, a remarkable antifungal activity against Aspergillus brasiliensis and Aspergillus fumigatus. In terms of antiproliferative activity, the E.Os extracted through HD demonstrated higher tumoral cell growth inhibition against the majority of the studied cancer cell lines, with pine E.O standing out with the lowest GI50 value, and none of the tested E.O showed cytotoxicity against normal cell line studied in this case (PLP2). The E.Os also revealed an anti-inflammatory capacity that stood out mainly with those extracted using HD. This work highlights the promising use of essential oils as headspace preservatives for food packaging.
- Non-alkaloid nitrogen-containing compounds from fungiPublication . Hached, Hanine; Cassani, Lucia; Zbiss, Yosra; Fraga-Corral, Maria; Oliveira, Izamara; Pereira, Antia Gonzalez; Prieto Lage, Miguel A.; Heleno, Sandrina A.; Carocho, MarcioFungi represent an ancient ubiquitous and interesting kingdom that can be classified into Phycomycota, Oomycota, Microsporidiomycota, Zygomycota, Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, and Deuteromycota divisions. These microorganisms are considered as a reservoir of bioactive compounds that can be exploited in crucial fields: food, pharmaceutical, and agricultural industries. Non-alkaloid nitrogenated compounds are considered a prolific bouquet composed of proteins such as enzymes playing an essential role in the synthesis of compounds that are involved in vital life processes, lytic enzymes possessing depleting effects, antibiotics, toxins applied as antimicrobials and antifungals, immunosuppressive molecules, etc. Moreover, a number of species found in phyla like Oomycota and Microsporidiomycota have been and are still used as biological control agents for crops as a counterpart to chemical products.