Browsing by Author "Pimentel, Filipa B."
Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- Almond cold-pressed oil by-product as ingredient for cookies with potential health benefits: chemical and sensory evaluationPublication . Barreira, João C.M.; Nunes, M. Antónia; Silva, Beatriz Vieira da; Pimentel, Filipa B.; Costa, Anabela S.G.; Alvarez-Ortí, M.; Pardo, J.E.; Oliveira, BeatriztNowadays, food security is a global concern and a great scientific challenge. Agro-industrial by-productscan be used as potential ingredients of innovative food products, contributing to solve this societaldemand. By-products of high specialty oils processing, for instance, have remarkable nutritional andorganoleptic properties. Accordingly, the partially delipidified almond flour (PDAF) remaining fromalmond oil extraction, was used as an alternative ingredient in a highly appreciated almond-based cookie(“almendrados”). For comparison purposes, four different “almendrados” formulations (one industrial,two with PDAF, and one with whole almond flour), were compared regarding nutritional composition,vitamin E and fatty acids profiles. To assess the cookie sensory properties, seventy-four consumers eval-uated “appearance”, “taste”, “sweetness”, “crunchiness”, “hardness”, “overall quality” using adequatehedonic scales. Fat and protein levels showed significant differences among industrial and the otherthree samples. Cookies with PDAF presented similar tocopherols and fatty acids to the traditional (moreexpensive) formulation, besides reaching the highest scores on “appearance”, “sweetness”, “hardness”,“overall quality” and “buying predisposition” parameters. Accordingly, the incorporation of PDAF mightrepresent an effective way of adding value to an industrial by-product, while providing a pleasant novelcookie formulation.
- Evaluation of the cytotoxicity (HepG2) and chemical composition of polar extracts from the ruderal species Coleostephus myconis (L.) Rchb.f.Publication . Bessada, Sílvia M.F.; Barreira, João C.M.; Santos, J.V. Araújo; Costa, Carla Sofia; Pimentel, Filipa B.; Bessa, Maria João; Teixeira, João Paulo Fernandes; Oliveira, BeatrizColeostephus myconis (L.) Rchb.f. (Asteraceae) is a highly disseminated plant species with ruderal and persistent growth. Owing to its advantageous agronomic properties, C. myconis might have industrial applications. However, this species needs to be comprehensively characterized before any potential use. In a previous study, the phenolic composition and antioxidant activity of different C. myconis tissues were characterized. This investigation was extended to examine the cytotoxic potential of selected plant tissues (flowers and green parts) using a HepG2 cell line by utilizing the lysosomal neutral red uptake assay or mitochondrial (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazolyl-2)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. In addition, the macronutrients content, lipophilic compounds (fatty acids, tocopherols), and amino acids were also determined. C. myconis flowers were used in the senescence stage, which was previously identified as the stage that presented maximal phenolic content and highest antioxidant activity. In contrast, stems and leaves were employed due to their high biomass proportion. Regarding cytotoxicity, mitochondrial and lysosomal damage was only significant when HepG2 cells were exposed to the highest extract concentrations (stems and leaves, 0.9 mg/ml; senescent flowers, 0.3 mg/ml). Chemically, the senescent flowers were mostly characterized by their high levels of fat, amino acids (especially threonine), oleic acid, ß-, and ?-tocopherol, while stems and leaves contained high concentrations of carbohydrates, linolenic acid, and a-tocopherol. In general, these results provide information regarding the threshold concentrations of C. myconis extracts that might be used in different applications without toxicity hazards.
- Improving bioactive compounds extractability of Amorphophallus paeoniifolius (Dennst.) NicolsonPublication . Costa, Anabela S.G.; Barreira, João C.M.; Ruas, Adilson; Vinha, Ana F.; Pimentel, Filipa B.; Alves, Rita C.; Ferreira, Isabel C.F.R.; Oliveira, BeatrizElephant foot yam (Amorphophallus paeoniifolius (Dennst.) Nicolson) is an underground, unbranched deciduous plant that produces a large tubercle (rhizome) with recognized health effects. In this study, the influence of solvent nature (water, water/etanol (1:1) and absolute ethanol) and processing type (fresh, lyophilized and boiled) on the antioxidant activity and bioactive compounds extractability of elephant foot yam was evaluated. Extracts were compared for their contents in total phenolics, flavonoids and tannins. Moreover, their antioxidant capacity was assessed by the ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH▪) scavenging capacity assays. Phenolics (154 mg GAE/L) and tannins (109 mg GAE/L) were maximized in lyophilized samples extracted with the hydroalcoholic solvent, which attained also the highest FRAP value (711 mg FSE/L). In turn, flavonoids reached the highest yields in lyophilized samples (95 mg ECE/L) extracted with pure ethanol, as well as the highest DPPH▪ scavenging activity. These findings might have practical applications to define the best processing methodology regarding the enhancement of elephant foot yam, either for prompt consumption, as well as to develop food supplements or pharmaceutical related products.