Bioactivity and Sensory Properties of Probiotic Yogurt Fortified with Apple Pomace Flour

To meet the demand for new functional foods in line with the trend of sustainable development, a novel probiotic yogurt fortified with 1%, 3%, and 5% apple pomace flour (APF) added immediately after inoculation with Lactobacillus acidophilus, Streptococcus thermophilus, and Bifidobacterium bifidum was developed. Upon fermentation in the presence of APF, a number of probiotic strains remained within the required range, while the syneresis of enriched yogurts was reduced up to 1.8 times in comparison to the control. Supernatants (i.e., extracted whey) obtained from yogurts with 1%, 3%, and 5% APF respectively had 1.4-, 1.8-, and 2.3-fold higher total phenolic content (TPC) than the control, 3.3-, 4.7-, and 8.0-fold higher radical scavenging (DPPH), and 1.3-, 1.6-, and 1.7-fold higher reducing activity (FRAP). Also, probiotic yogurt supernatants (3% and 5%) inhibited colon cancer cells’ viability (HCT 116, 12% and 17%; SW-620, 13% and 19%, respectively). The highest firmness, cohesiveness, and viscosity index values, and the highest scores for color and taste, were obtained for yogurt with 3% APF, indicating that this is the optimal APF amount for the production of novel yogurt with functional properties.

Outbreaks and factors influencing microbiological contamination of fresh produce

Fresh fruits and vegetables are nutritionally well-recognised as healthy components in diets. The microbiological foodborne outbreaks associated with the consumption of fresh produce have been increasing. Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli O157:H7, Staphylococcus aureus, Campylobacter spp. and Listeria monocytogenes are the most common pathogens that contaminate fresh produce. This review discusses recent foodborne outbreaks linked to fresh produce, factors that affect microbiological contamination and measures that could be adopted to reduce the foodborne illnesses. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

The antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of Muscari neglectum flower ethanol extract

Introduction: Muscari neglectum has been used as food in some countries.

Objective: The antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of M. neglectum were the subject of the study.

Methods: In this study, the total phenolic, flavonoid, monomeric anthocyanin contents, antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of M. neglectum flowers ethanol extract were determined by different methods against some food poisoning microorganisms.

Results: Total phenolic, flavonoids and anthocyanin contents of the extract were 18.2, 0.94 and 0.11%, respectively. The IC50 for M. neglectum was higher than that of BHT. M. neglectum extract showed no inhibition zone (IZ) against Staphylococcus aureus and had small IZ against Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger. Shigella flexneri and Escherichia coli had the higher IZ than the others. The lower MIC and MLC values were for C. albicans, followed by Sh. flexneri and E. coli. S. aureus had the higher MIC and MLC values than the others.

Conclusion: Therefore, the M. neglectum flower extract can be used as a natural preservative and coloring agent in foods as replacement of synthetic ones.