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- Essential Oils from Plants: Industrial Applications and Biotechnological ProductionPublication . Andrade, Mariana; Santos, Regiane; Sanches-silva, AnaEssential oils have been used since the discovery of fre by many civiliza tions. Alchemists used to produce the Quinta essentia by distillation, which now is known as essential oils. This review aims to provide a systematic overview of the composition in terms of active compounds and main biological activities of differ ent essential oils. In general terms, these include anti-infammatory, antidepressant, antioxidant, antitumor, antimicrobial, anticancer, and antimutagenic activities. In addition, the techniques to extract and evaluate their composition are dis cussed. Moreover, their main industrial applications, especially the application as favors and fragrances, in pharmaceutical and medicinal industry, in alternative medicines, in cosmetic industry, and in food industry are also reviewed and dis cussed in order to identify the future trends. Finally, the biotechnological produc tion of essential oils and their components was also assessed.
- The Usefulness of Human Biomonitoring in the Case of Mycotoxins Exposure AssessmentPublication . Viegas, Susana; Martins, CarlaHuman Biomonitoring (HBM) has been identified as a promising tool to assess the exposure to contaminants from different origins, providing information of aggregated exposures from different routes and contributing to the establishment of the total body burden of an individual. Mycotoxins are fungi metabolites produced by specific fungal genera that can resist to adverse environmental factors making difficult to eliminate or inactivate from the source even after being exposed to culinary processes. Therefore, the most common exposure source is the diet but exposure in indoor and occupational environments have already been reported. This article highlights the usefulness of HBM when performing mycotoxins exposure assessment and the support that HBM data can give to risk management measures and policy actions in order to reduce exposure.
- Food Additives and Human Health - Indirect AdditivesPublication . Andrade, Mariana; Ribeiro-Santos, Regiane; Nabavi, Seyed; Sanches-Silva, AnaIndirect food additives are the additives that are not intended to be added directly to foods but are added to food contact articles namely, food packaging. In this chapter, the main indirect additives are reviewed, as well as, the legal aspects and regulatory control applied to these kinds of substances in the USA and the European Union. The migration of some of these compounds to foods is undesired and, in some cases, may represent a threat to human health. This chapter also highlights some specific groups of indirect additives including monomers, plasticizers, antioxidants and antimicrobials, catalysts, initiators, curing and cross-linking agents, stabilizers, and solvents. Future trends in the use of indirect additives are also discussed in this chapter. Innovative technologies in the food packaging industry are emerging every day, so the regulations and the regulatory agencies must be updated.
- Mycotoxins as Endocrine Disruptors – An Emerging ThreatPublication . Martins, Carla; Vidal, Arnau; De Boevre, M.; Assunção, R.Zearalenone and alternariol are mycotoxins produced by Fusarium and Alternaria species, respectively, that present estrogenic activity and are considered endocrine disruptors. These mycotoxins are present in a variety of food commodities and the human exposure could be of concern due to the associated health effects. This article intends to gather and systematize key information regarding these mycotoxins considered EDCs.
- Essential OilsPublication . Ribeiro-Santos, Regiane; Andrade, Mariana; Sanches-Silva, AnaEssential oils are natural compounds obtained from plants with powerful biological activities. Several studies have reported their use as food additives due to their actions as antimicrobial and antioxidant agents. Despite some limitations, such as aroma and toxicity related to high doses, the use of essential oils in foods is promising and makes it possible to reduce the use of synthetic additives in food applications. In this chapter, the most common extraction methods, as well as the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of some essential oils are addressed. The legal aspects and the general health effects of essential oils are also covered.
- Chapter 44 - Prickly pearPublication . Albuquerque, T.G.; Pereira, P.; Silva, M.A.; Vicente, F.; Ramalho, R.; Costa, H.S.Nowadays, consumers are increasingly interested in foods that are linked with health benefits, in addition to their nutritional composition. Prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill.) is native to Mexico, but nowadays it is widely spread among other regions of the world, such as Africa, Australia, and the Mediterranean basin, due to its pleasant organoleptic features. Prickly pear belongs to the Cactaceae family, which includes over 1500 species of cacti. Moreover, it is gaining popularity among consumers due to the presence of bioactive compounds, namely polyphenols, vitamins, polyunsaturated fatty acids, carotenoids, and sterols that are associated with relevant functional and biological activities, such as antiinflammatory, antioxidant, and hypoglycemic properties, among others. In addition, this plant can also be used as a fence in gardens and fields and is useful in helping to combat desertification as it grows in arid and semiarid regions. Nowadays, it is widely used to manufacture food products, such as juices and jams, but it is also consumed as a fruit. Prickly pear is a promising source of phytochemicals, which can be useful for food, or in the cosmetics or pharmaceutical industries to develop new products with health-promoting properties, namely, functional foods, natural additives, or dietary supplements.
- Biologically active and health promoting food components of nuts, oilseeds, fruits, vegetables, cereals, and legumesPublication . Albuquerque, T.G.; Nunes, M.A.; Bessada, S.M.F.; Costa, H.S.; Oliveira, M.B.P.P.The primary role of diet is to provide, in quality and quantity, enough nutrients to meet basic metabolic requirements of consumers. Cereals, legumes, vegetables, fruits, nuts, vegetable oils, and related products are daily consumed by worldwide population as fundamental source of food energy, but also due to its richness in biologically active compounds with potential health promoting properties. There are thousands of bioactive compounds already identified and studied for their health promoting properties, however there still a lot of research to be done. This chapter describes the main food sources, as well as, health promoting properties, of some food components (phytosterols, fatty acids, polyphenols, carotenoids, glucosinolates, dietary fiber, isoflavones, and lignans). In fact, these compounds were selected due to its abundance in some of the major consumed food groups. Nuts, oilseeds, and derived products are well known for their richness in phytosterols and unsaturated fatty acids. In the last years, great attention has been given to this group of compounds because they are linked with several health benefits, namely antiinflammatory, antioxidative, anticarcinogenic activities, and cholesterol lowering capacity. On the other hand, fresh fruit and vegetables are the major sources of polyphenols, carotenoids, and glucosinolates. Nutritional guidelines promote the consumption of three to five daily servings of fruits and vegetables for protection against chronic diseases, such as cardio and neurovascular diseases. These foods, besides providing basic nutrition confers other significant health effects mainly due to its content in vitamins (especially vitamins C and A) minerals, polyphenols, and soluble and insoluble fiber. Lastly, cereals and/or legumes are the major sources of dietary fiber, lignans, and isoflavones. Besides their nutritional role, several scientific and epidemiological studies have shown that regular consumption of cereals and/or legumes and their related products are associated with reduced risk of various types of chronic diseases as cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, and obesity, and some types of cancers as colorectal, prostate, breast, and estrogen-related cancers. These evidences can mean that regular consumption of cereals and legumes promote human health and consequent prevention of diseases.
- Climate Change and Aflatoxins Contamination in the Iberian PeninsulaPublication . Assunção, Ricardo; Vettorazzi, Ariane; González-Penas, Elena; Martins, CarlaClimate change constitutes an important driver affecting food sector, and consequently represents a public health issue that deserves particular attention. Under this context, mycotoxins emerge as a particular concern since their prevalence and concentrations in food and feed may vary due to climatic conditions. Aflatoxins, the most toxic mycotoxins, present a particular concern, taking into account the potential health effects arising from human and animal exposure. The present article aims to answer two main questions: Are aflatoxins a concern in the Iberian Peninsula? How the climate change could impact aflatoxins contamination and the risk of human exposure in Iberian Peninsula?
- 4-Hydroxy-2-Alkenals: a Potential Toxicological Concern of Vegetable Oils?Publication . Albuquerque, T.G.; Oliveira, M.B.P.P.; Costa, H.S.4-hydroxy-2-alkenals, namely 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (HNE) and 4-hydroxy-2-hexenal (HHE) are secondary lipid oxidation products of n-6 and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, respectively. An overview of the current knowledge about HNE and HHE in vegetable oils, including factors influencing their formation, health effects, analytical approaches, as well as mitigation strategies and future challenges are discussed. During the last years, an increased attention is being paid to these mutagenic, cytotoxic and genotoxic compounds. Due to their high reactivity and implication in numerous undesirable reactions, they can be linked with several diseases and medical conditions. Vegetable oils were identified as one of the major sources of these compounds, becoming a potential toxicological concern for public health. Up to now, the fatty acids composition, time, temperature and type of frying, as well as different processing conditions were evaluated in order to find a relationship with the presence of these hazardous compounds in vegetable oils. With respect to mitigation strategies to reduce the occurrence of HNE and HHE in vegetable oils, atmospheres with low oxygen content during frying, carbon dioxide blanketing as well as addition of phenolic compounds to the vegetable oils were studied. In the near future, it is important to exploit other conditions to explain the different amounts reported for the same type of vegetable oil from different origins, as well as to evaluate realistic conditions of frying, especially the presence of food, frying equipment and temperatures, among others.
- ICT-Supported Interventions Targeting Pre-frailty: Healthcare Recommendations from the Personalised ICT Supported Service for Independent Living and Active Ageing (PERSSILAA) StudyPublication . O’Caoimh, R.; Molloy, D.W.; Fitzgerald, C.; Velsen, L.V.; Cabrita, M.; Nassabi, M.H.; Vette, F.; van Weering, M.D.; Jansen-Kosterink, S.; Kenter, W.; Frazer, S.; Rauter, A.P.; Turkman, A.; Antunes, M.; Turkman, F.; Silva, M.S.; Martins, A.; Costa, H.S.; Albuquerque, T.G.; Ferreira, A.; Scherillo, M.; De Luca, V.; Abete, P.; Colao, A.; García-Rudolph, A.; Sanchez-Carrion, R.; Sánchez, J.S.; Aguilera, E.J.G.; Illario, M.; Hermens, H.; Vollenbroek-Hutten, M.As society ages, healthcare systems are preparing for an increasing prevalence of frail, co-morbid and older community-dwellers at risk of adverse outcomes including falls, malnutrition, hospitalisation, institutionalisation and death. Early intervention is desirable and pre-frailty, before onset of functional decline, may represent a suitable transition stage to target, albeit evidence for reversibility and appropriate interventions are limited. No consensus on the definition, diagnosis or management of pre-frailty exists. This work describes 25 healthcare related findings from the recently completed PERsonalised ICT Supported Service for Independent Living and Active Ageing (PERSSILAA) project, funded under the 2013–2016 European Union Framework Programme 7 (grant #610359). PERSSILAA developed a comprehensive Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)-supported platform to screen, assess, intervene and then monitor community-dwellers in two regions (Enschede in the Netherlands and Campania in Italy) in order to address pre-frailty and promote active and healthy ageing, targeting three important pre-frailty subdomains: nutrition, cognition and physical function. Proposed definitions of pre-frailty, ICT-based approaches to screen and monitor for the onset of frailty and targeted management strategies employing technology across these domains are described. The potential of these 25 healthcare recommendations in the development of future European guidelines on the screening and prevention of frailty is explored.