0000000000141139
AUTHOR
Marcella Barbera
showing 30 related works from this author
Wastewater Treatments for the Food Industry: Physical-Chemical Systems
2017
This chapter provides a general overview of physical–chemical wastewater remediation systems in the food industry. Water reuse systems are becoming more and more interesting and promising technologies, depending on merely quantitative estimations, physical and chemical features of pollutants and the variability of these characteristics, week after week. Different systems are available for the food industry, depending on the final destination or water effluents and peculiar chemical–physical and biological features of the fluids before treatment. Several of these remediation systems can be subdivided into different groups, depending on the desired amount of gross removed matters, or into fou…
The distribution of Rare Earth Elements discriminates the growth substrate of Vitis vinifera L.
2021
Sustainable agricultural, food-related strategies and geographic traceability require understanding of the plant physiological response to stress potentially generated by contaminated soils. Here, we have investigated the effect of contaminated substrate on growth of Vitis vinifera L. plants analysing the distribution of full Rare Earth Elements (REE) spectra in different parts of the plant. Experiments were carried out using pristine plants growing in a handmade substrate (blank experiment) and in REE artificially-enriched soil (spiked experiment). Our results show that both plant mass and REE amount in leaves are not influenced by the substrate enrichment while roots are by one-order of m…
Effect of Salt Concentration and Extremely Halophilic Archaea on the Safety and Quality Characteristics of Traditional Salted Anchovies
2017
Extremely halophilic archaea (EHA) might play an important role in salted fish production. So far, limited information has been available on the effect of EHA and salt concentration on the safety and quality characteristics of salted anchovies. Eight Halobacterium salinarum strains were isolated from different sea salt samples and subjected to phenotypic and genotypic characterization. The strains were then inoculated into fresh salt before addition to anchovies. A total of 18 experimental productions were performed. The inoculated trials showed the lowest counts of undesired microorganisms. In particular, salted anchovies produced with Hbt. salinarum H11 showed the lowest histamine concent…
Influence of Citrus Essential Oils on the Microbiological, Physicochemical and Antioxidant Properties of Primosale Cheese
2022
The aim of this study was to produce a fresh ovine pressed cheese within Pecorino “Primosale” typology with the addition of citrus essential oils (EOs). For this purpose, ewe’s pasteurized milk was added with EOs from the peel of lemons, oranges and tangerines. Seven cheese productions were performed at the pilot plant scale level, including one control production (CP) without the addition of EOs and six experimental productions obtained by the addition of two EO concentrations (100 and 200 µL/L) to milk. The acidification process was obtained by means of the starter cultures Lactococcus lactis CAG4 and PON36. All cheeses showed levels of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) a…
Optimising Lactic Acid Cheese Packaging Systems
2016
On the basis of a previous research, it seems that foil-wrapped tray solutions are not particularly chosen by lactic acid cheese consumers. With relation to this study, almost half of the respondent population would have expressed the desire of different packages. Parchment packages and poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate)/polyvinylidene chloride/poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) laminates would be removed by 25.0 and 12.5% of customers, respectively. Polyamide/polyethylene double and single packaging would be removed from the market only by 5.0% of respondents. Data have shown that cheese and packaging quality are dependent on lactic acid cheese surface microflora. The type of this microflora is …
The Production of Industrial Cow’s Milk Curds
2016
By the historical viewpoint, cheeses are the final product of a complex work starting from milk. This liquid substance has to be coagulated: as a result, a heterogeneous matter—curd—is precipitated from the original milk. The rough composition of this intermediate influences the chemical composition of the final cheese. For these reasons, the production of industrial curds should be studied with attention. Different systems are available at present, but the mail process concerns always the coagulation of the original milk and the production of readily available curds for immediate or subsequent use (near the same cheesemaker or in different locations).This chapter discusses the normal produ…
The Pattern of Rare Earth Elements Like a Possible Helpful Tool in Traceability and Geographical Characterization of the Soil-Olive System (Olea euro…
2022
The identification of a product, with its geographical origin, is a guaranty of the value of the foodstuff and protection from potential fraud. Extra virgin olive oil is produced or marketed as a single variety or a blend of two or more cultivars, often of different geographic origins. Therefore, to study a possible link between the soil and olive oil, we accounted crucial to analyse the behaviour of olive of different cultivars. We studied Rare Earth Elements (REE) amounts and their relationship to trace their distribution from soil to the olive pulp (Olea europea L.). The results obtained pointed out that the different cultivars of Olea did not drive significant differences in reciprocal …
Wastewater Treatments for the Food Industry: Biological Systems
2017
This chapter provides a general overview of biological wastewater remediation systems in the food industry. Water reuse systems are becoming more and more interesting and promising technologies, depending on merely quantitative estimations, physical and chemical features of pollutants and the variability of these characteristics, week after week. Different systems are available for the food industry. Several of these remediation systems may be subdivided into four categories depending on the peculiar removal operation, including biological systems. Biological techniques aim to reduce organic loads and the remaining suspended materials in wastewaters from primary processes (after a prelimina…
Persistence of a mixed lactic acid bacterial starter culture during lysine fortification of sourdough breads by addition of pistachio powder
2020
Abstract Pistachio powder was added to flour or semolina to evaluate its contribution to increase the amount of lysine in bread. Bread production was carried out by sourdough technology using a selected 3-species (Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis/Leuconostoc citreum/Weissella cibaria) lactic acid bacterial (LAB) starter culture. All sourdoughs were subjected to a long-time fermentation (21 h) and showed levels of LAB around 109 CFU/g, indicating the suitability of pistachio powder for lactic fermentation. Yeasts were also detected, in particular in semolina trials. MiSeq Illumina technology was applied to investigate the bacterial composition of sourdoughs evidencing a different distribution …
Chemical Correlations Between Industrial Curds and Final Cheeses. Can Cheesemakers Standardise Productions?
2016
The chemical composition of milks and curds influences the microbial ecology and chemical features of produced cheeses. This statement is quite obvious because ‘normal’ cheeses—products with a prevailing ingredient, milk—are obtained by means of the transformation of the main raw material and the addition of minor components. Because of the possible scarcity of readily available milk in many regions or economic areas, the industry of milk and dairy products, including cheeses, has improved the production of ready-to-use curds. These products, also named ‘industrial curds’, are produced exclusively for further cheesemaking processes. For this reason, ready-to-use curds are pre-packaged with …
Inhibitory Activity and Chemical Characterization ofDaucus carotasubsp.maximusEssential Oils
2017
The essential oils (EOs) of green seeds from Daucus carota subsp. maximus growing wild in Pantelleria Island (Sicily, Italy) were characterized. EOs were extracted by steam distillation, examined for their inhibitory properties against food-borne Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and analyzed for the chemical composition by gas chromatography (GC) and mass spectrometry (MS). Undiluted EOs showed a large inhibition spectrum against Gram-positive strains and also vs. Acinetobacter spp. and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. The minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) was in the range 1.25 â 2.50 μl/ml for the most sensitive strains. The chemical analysis indicated that D. carota subsp…
Influence of salt of different origin on the microbiological characteristics, histamine generation and volatile profile of salted anchovies (Engrauli…
2018
Abstract The effect of six salts of different geographical areas on the quality of salted anchovies was evaluated. The crude salts were chemically characterized by determination of inorganic and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Salted anchovies, corresponding to six experimental trials, were subjected to microbiological, chemical (including histamine content) and sensory analysis during the entire period of ripening (150 days). The salts were characterized by marked differences in terms of major cations and trace element amounts. Among the 27 VOCs detected, octadecane was the most abundant compound and the main differences of the salts were registered for alkanes and alcohols. During matu…
Effect of the lemon essential oils on the safety and sensory quality of salted sardines (Sardina pilchardus Walbaum 1792)
2017
The main aim of this research was to investigate the biopreservative effects of lemon essential oil (EO) micro-emulsions on salted sardines. The experimental design included two experimental trials, SR1 and SR2 carried out with 25 ml of lemon EO micro-emulsion at 0.3 and 1.0% (v/v), respectively, and a control trial performed without EO addition. Chemical analyses on salted sardines inoculated with the EOs clearly showed a substantial persistence of several volatile organic compounds (VOCs) belonging to groups of monoterpene hydrocarbons, oxygenated monoterpenes and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons derived from EOs during the entire period of ripening. In particular, the molecules mostly represen…
A survey of the main technology, biochemical and microbiological features influencing the concentration of biogenic amines of twenty Apulian and Sici…
2015
Abstract Twenty Apulian and Sicilian cheeses were analysed for their concentrations of eight biogenic amines (BAs), free amino acids, pH, water activity, and subjected to microbiological characterisation. In addition, lactic acid bacteria isolated from cheeses were assayed for their capacity to generate BAs. Principal component analysis was performed to find the effect of different parameters on the distribution of the cheeses. Although short-ripened (≤30 d) cheeses did not show significant BA concentrations, the only BA showing high positive correlation with time of ripening was histamine. Concentration of histidine and, especially, percentage of histidine-decarboxylase bacteria presumably…
Water Reuse in the Food Industry: Quality of Original Wastewater Before Treatments
2017
This chapter introduces one of the most important emergencies in the world of food and non-food industries: the availability of clean and drinking water. Water use has more than tripled globally since 1950: water quality and its scarcity are increasingly recognised as one of the most important environmental threats to humankind. In addition, the food and beverage processing industry requires copious amounts of water. For these reasons, direct and indirect water reuse systems are becoming more and more interesting and promising technologies. Different reuse guidelines have been recently issued as the result of risk assessment and management approaches linked to health-based targets. Chemical…
Optimised method for the analysis of phenolic compounds from caper (Capparis spinosa L.) berries and monitoring of their changes during fermentation
2016
In this work, an ad hoc method to identify and quantify polyphenols from caper berries was developed on high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionisation source/mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS). The method was applied during fermentation carried out with Lactobacillus pentosus OM13 (Trial S) and without starter (Trial C). A total of five polyphenols were identified. All samples contained high concentrations of rutin. Epicatechin was found in untreated fruits, on the contrary quercetin was detected during fermentation. Trial S was characterised by a more rapid acidification and lower levels of spoilage microorganisms than Trial C. L. pentosus dominated among the microbial communi…
Phenols, Flavors, and the Mediterranean Diet.
2020
Abstract Phenols or phenolics are a class of compounds that have one or more hydroxyl groups attached to a 6-carbon aromatic ring, they occur as plant secondary metabolites, having in common the antioxidant activity. Their average daily intake varies widely around the world. Many researchers consider coffee, tea, wine, cocoa products, fruits and vegetables as the main sources of polyphenols in different diets. However, spices and culinary herbs have been referred to as the foods richest in polyphenols. Despite spices and culinary herbs are used in small amounts as seasonings, their contribution to the dietary supply of phytonutrients should not be disregarded. A diet rich in a variety of po…
Reuse of Food Waste and Wastewater as a Source of Polyphenolic Compounds to Use as Food Additives
2020
Abstract The problem of waste and byproducts generated from agro-industrial activities worldwide is an increasing concern in terms of environmental sustainability. In this ambit, the quantity of food wastes—produced in all steps of the whole food chain—is enormous, and it may be forecasted that food waste could amount to more than 120 billion tonnes by 2020. The reuse of food waste and wastewater as source of polyphenolic compounds could be an interesting discussion in this ambit. In fact, polyphenols obtained in this way might be used for food and non-food purposes by means of new, improved, and safe extraction methods. In light of the opportunity represented by the treatment of agro-indus…
Quality Standards for Recycled Water: Opuntia ficus-indica as Sorbent Material
2017
In recent years, increased industrial and agricultural activities and the correlated population growth led to overexploitation of natural resources and the increased generation of various types of pollutants. For these reasons, the hazardous pollution of wastewater is one of the most important environmental problems worldwide. A wide range of wastewater treatment technologies are available; however, some disadvantages are often reported. Hence, there is a constant need to search for an efficient, low-cost and alternative wastewater treatment. Recently, several biosolids have been considered for pollutant removal from wastewaters, including Opuntia ficus-indica. This chapter focuses on waste…
Evolutive Profiles of Caseins and Degraded Proteins in Industrial Cow’s Milk Curds
2016
The importance of prepackaged curds in the current cheese market is increased in the last years because of the persistence of cyclic periods with remarkable diminution of stored raw materials. Consequently, the cyclic deficiency of cow’s milk may determine the subsequent lack of correlated derivatives and force manufacturers to use prepackaged curds. Because of the critical importance of the chemical and microbiological ‘quality’ of these curds, the study of evolutive profiles of casein contents in selected industrial curds should be recommended. The aim of this chapter has been to show the analytical results of an industrial study carried out on seven different cow’s milk curds during stor…
Edible Insects an Alternative Nutritional Source of Bioactive Compounds: A Review
2023
Edible insects have the potential to become one of the major future foods. In fact, they can be considered cheap, highly nutritious, and healthy food sources. International agencies, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), have focused their attention on the consumption of edible insects, in particular, regarding their nutritional value and possible biological, toxicological, and allergenic risks, wishing the development of analytical methods to verify the authenticity, quality, and safety of insect-based products. Edible insects are rich in proteins, fats, fiber, vitamins, and minerals but also seem to contain large amounts of polyphenols able to have a key role in specific bi…
Effect on the Antioxidant, Lipoperoxyl Radical Scavenger Capacity, Nutritional, Sensory and Microbiological Traits of an Ovine Stretched Cheese Produ…
2021
An innovative ovine cheese enriched with red grape pomace powder (GPP) was produced to improve the functional properties of Vastedda cheese typology. Vastedda cheese making was performed adding GPP and four selected Lactococcus lactis strains (Mise36, Mise94, Mise169 and Mise190). For each strain, 40 L of pasteurized ewe’s milk was divided into two aliquots representing control and experimental trials. Control cheese (CC) production did not contain GPP, while the experimental cheese (EC) production was enriched with 1% (w/w) GPP. GPP did not slow down starter development and acid generation. Plate counts and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)-PCR analysis confirmed the dominance of t…
Evaluation of the Fermentation Dynamics of Commercial Baker’s Yeast in Presence of Pistachio Powder to Produce Lysine-Enriched Breads
2019
The present work was carried out to evaluate the microbiological, physicochemical, and sensory characteristics of fortified pistachio breads. Pistachio powder (5% w/w) was added to flour or semolina and fermented by a commercial baker’s yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). Pistachio powder did not influence the biological leavening of the doughs. The kinetics of pH and total titratable acidity (TTA) during dough fermentation showed that the leavening process occurred similarly for all trials. The concentration of yeasts increased during fermentation and reached levels of 108 CFU/g after 2 h. Pistachio powder decreased the height and softness of the final breads and increased cell density…
Sourdough “ciabatta” bread enriched with powdered insects: Physicochemical, microbiological, and simulated intestinal digesta functional properties
2021
Abstract Powdered mealworm (MW) and buffalo worm (BW) larvae were used to functionalize sourdough Italian-style breads. Sourdough inoculum was started with Levilactobacillus brevis, Weissella cibaria and Leuconostoc citreum. The doughs were SBS (semolina plus powdered BW larvae and sourdough) and SMS (semolina plus powdered MW larvae and sourdough) whose pHs (4.32 and 4.21, respectively) were higher than that of control (3.81). The highest fermentation quotient (lactate/acetate molar ratio) was recorded in SMS (4.46). LAB reached viable counts of about 109 CFU g−1 in almost all doughs. Insects impacted bread VOCs with dodecanal, 2.4-dodecadienal and 2-octenal-2-butyl. SBS and SMS increased …
Untreated Opuntia ficus indica for the Efficient Adsorption of Ni(II), Pb(II), Cu(II) and Cd(II) Ions from Water
2023
The raw cladode of Opuntia ficus indica (OFI) was evaluated as a sustainable biosorbent for the removal of heavy metals (Ni, Pb, Cu, and Cd) from aqueous solutions. The functional groups of OFI were identified by employing DRIFT-FTIR and CP-MAS-NMR techniques before and after contact with the ions in an aqueous media, showing a rearrangement of the biomass structure due to the complexation between the metal and the functional groups. The adsorption process was studied in both single- and multi-component systems under batch conditions at different pHs (4.0, 5.0, and 6.0), different metal concentrations, and different biomass amounts. The results show that the raw OFI had a removal capacity a…
The Use of Winery by-Products to Enhance the Functional Aspects of the Fresh Ovine “Primosale” Cheese
2021
Fresh ovine “primosale” cheese was processed with the addition of grape pomace powder (GPP). Cheese making was performed using pasteurized ewes’ milk and four selected Lactococcus lactis strains (Mise36, Mise94, Mise169 and Mise190) inoculated individually. For each strain the control cheese (CCP) was not added with GPP, while the experimental cheese (ECP) was enriched with 1% (w/w) GPP. GPP did not influence the starter development that reached levels of 109 CFU/g in all final cheeses. The comparison of the bacterial isolates by randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)-PCR showed the dominance of the added strains over indigenous milk bacteria resistant to pasteurization. GPP addition red…
Effect of grape pomace from red cultivar 'Nero d’Avola' on the microbiological, physicochemical, phenolic profile and sensory aspects of ovine Vasted…
2022
Abstract Aims The purpose of this study was to functionalize an ovine stretched cheese belonging to 'Vastedda' typology with red grape pomace powder (GPP) of Nero d’Avola cultivar and to characterize the microbiological, physicochemical, phenolic profile and sensory characteristics of the final cheeses. Methods and Results Before cheeses production, GPP was characterized for its microbiological profile, antibacterial activity and polyphenolic content. No colonies of bacteria and yeasts were detected in the GPP. GPP showed a large inhibition spectrum against spoilage and pathogenic bacteria. Three classes of polyphenolic compounds belonging to flavan-3-ols, flavonol and phenolic acids were i…
Metagenomic, microbiological, chemical and sensory profiling of Caciocavallo Podolico Lucano cheese
2023
In this study, Caciocavallo Podolico Lucano (CPL) cheese was deeply characterized for its bacterial community, chemical composition and sensory aspects. The entire cheese making process (from milk collection to ripened cheese) was performed by strictly applying the traditional protocol for CPL production in four dairy factories (A–D) representative of the production area. The vat made of wood represents the main transformation tool for CPL cheese production and the biofilms hosted onto the internal surfaces of all vats analyzed in this study were dominated by lactic acid bacteria. Total mesophilic microorganisms present in bulk milk (4.7–5.0 log CFU/ml) increased consistently after contact …
Behaviour of REE in the soil/Vitis Vinifera L. system. Geochemical Approach for Food Traceability
2021
The geographic traceability of food products through the use of chemical markers is an important challenge to ensure quality and authenticity of food. In recent years, the behaviour of Rare Earth Elements (REE) has been identified as possible tool for food geographical identification based on their known capability of tracing pedo-genetic and petro-genetic processes. In this thesis, the behaviour of REE in the Soil/Vitis vinifera L. system has been explored using a geochemical approach. The goal is to understand if the normalized pattern of REE (REE*) can be a useful tool to trace the geographical origin of food. REE may be accumulated in plants keeping their distribution in passing from so…
Evolution of lactic acid bacterial populations during lysine fortification of sourdough breads by addition of pistachio powder
2019
Food fortification is a current practise to increase the bioavailability of certain nutrients. In this study, 5% (w/w) pistachio powder was added to tender wheat flour or durum wheat semolina to evaluate its contribution to augment the amount of lysine in bread. Bread production was carried out by sourdough technology using a selected 3-species lactic acid bacterial (LAB) starter culture (Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis PON100336, Leuconostoc citreum PON10079 and Weissella cibaria PON10030). In order to determine the influence of pistachio powder on the evolution of LAB, sourdough bread productions were compared with control trials obtained from flour or semolina and evaluated for the develo…