Use of pulsed-high hydrostatic pressure treatment to decrease patulin in apple juice

This study was aimed at reducing patulin content of apple juice using a non-thermal method, namely pulsed-high hydrostatic pressure (p-HHP). Commercially available clear apple juice was contaminated artificially with different concentrations of patulin (5, 50 and 100?ppb). Then, the samples were processed 5?min at different pressure treatments (300–500?MPa) in combination with different temperatures (30–50°C) and pulses (6 pulses?×?50?s and 2 pulses?×?150?s). To compare the impact of pulses, single pulse of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatment was also applied with the same pressure/temperature combinations and holding time. Results indicated that pressure treatment in combination with mild heat and pulses reduced the levels of patulin in clear apple juice up to 62.11%. However, reduction rates did not follow a regular pattern. p-HHP was found to be more effective in low patulin concentrations, whereas HHP was more effective for high patulin concentrations. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study using p-HHP to investigate the reduction of patulin content in apple juice.     

Effect of high hydrostatic pressure and reducing sodium chloride and phosphate on physicochemical properties of beef gels

ABSTRACT

The effect of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatment (100–200?MPa, 10?min, 20°C) combined with sodium chloride and sodium phosphate on the physicochemical properties of beef gels was investigated. The water content, cooking losses, color, protein composition by SDS-PAGE analysis and texture parameters of beef gels were determined. The beef gels treated with high pressure at 150?MPa showed a synergistic effect in the increased water content and the decreased cooking losses compared with the unpressurized gels. The L*, a* and b* color values of beef gels were slightly decreased under HHP treatment at 100–200?MPa. In the SDS-PAGE analysis, the staining intensity of the α-actinin protein band was decreased in pressurized samples. The cohesiveness, adhesiveness, gel strength and modulus of elasticity were improved after HHP treatment. Application of high pressure treatment (150–200?MPa) before heat treatment would be beneficial for the manufacturing of low salt and/or low phosphate meat products for a healthy diet.     

The variability of times to detect growth from individual Clostridium botulinum type E endospores is differentially affected by high pressure treatments

High pressure thermal (HPT) processing is a candidate technology for the production of safe and stable food. However, little is known about the effect of HPT or high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatments at ambient temperature on the variability of times to detect growth from individual spores. We investigated this effect by treating Clostridium botulinum type E spores with HHP (200–600?MPa, 20°C) and HPT (600?MPa, 80°C and 800?MPa, 60°C). Our results indicate that the mean detection times increase and the frequency distribution shifts toward longer times when HHP treatment intensity is increased. HPT treatments result in a highly scattered distribution. In contrast, pressure levels ≤300?MPa decrease detection times and heterogeneity of their distribution, which could lead to an increase in the potential risk originating from C. botulinum type E spores. Data provided here could help to refine risk assessment regarding this important food intoxicator.     

Evaluation of quality changes of beetroot juice after high hydrostatic pressure processing

ABSTRACT

Freshly squeezed commercially available beetroot juice, a popular beverage in Poland, is a good source of betalains, but as a root vegetable can contain undesirable microflora from the soil. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of new preservation technique, high hydrostatic pressure, on the beetroot juice quality. Samples of beetroot juice were treated with pressure 300, 400 and 500?MPa/20°C/up to 10 min. Reduction in the total count of spoilage microorganisms reached 3.8, 4.1 and 4.5 log cfu/mL, depending on the pressure. After this treatment beetroot juice showed a 11.3–12.2% decrease in betacyanins content and 7.7–8.9% in betaxanthins content. A significant reduction of the number of spoilage microorganisms with a slight degradation of pigments indicates the possibility of industrial application of high pressure to the preservation of beetroot juice.     

High hydrostatic pressure pasteurization of a draft sake brewed using a Niigata-sake yeast

ABSTRACT

Draft (non-pasteurized) sake typically has a fresh flavor, but usually has to be consumed as soon as possible because of its short shelf life due to the potential for over-fermentation by residual yeast. In contrast, thermally pasteurized sake has a long shelf life, but the fresh flavor is lost during heat sterilization. High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatment can be used as a non-thermal pasteurization process while maintaining the characteristics of a draft sake. We evaluated the HHP inactivation behavior of sake yeast for the application of HHP pasteurization as an alternative to thermal pasteurization. The results showed complete pasteurization of sake yeast in the draft sake by HHP treatment at 400?MPa for 10?min. The viable cell count in HHP-pasteurized sake was below the detection limit during storage at 10°C for 3 months. Thus, we have established a HHP pasteurization technology to prevent over-fermentation and succeeded in producing a prototype of HHP-sparkling-cloudy sake, which we have designated AWANAMA.     

Effect of pH and high pressure at sub-zero temperature on the viability of some bacteria

The objective of this study was to investigate the viability of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus in apple juice after treatment with high pressure at sub-zero temperature and during subsequent storage at 5 and 20 °C. The viability of E. coli and S. aureus cells suspended in the apple juice with a pH of 3.8 did not decrease considerably after pressure treatment at 193 MPa and?20 °C. However, viability losses occurred during storage of samples after pressure treatment. Living cells of both strains were not detected in pressurized samples of apple juice stored for 10 days at 20°C. The lethal effect was lower when the samples after pressure treatment were incubated at refrigerated temperature; the number of E. coli and S. aureus decreased by 6 log cycles when the juice was stored for 10 days at 5 °C.     

The effect of high hydrostatic pressure on taste substance distribution in fresh green tea leaves

ABSTRACT

High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) can be an alternative method to steaming to inhibit enzymatic fermentation in green tea making process. However, the effect of HHP treatment on green tea taste is not clear. Thus, this study aimed to determine the effect of HHP on substances associated with green tea taste. Fresh green tea leaves were immediately treated with HHP at 300, 500, or 700?MPa for 10, 30, or 60 min at 25°C. The concentration of free amino acids, catechins, and caffeine in HHP-treated samples was quantified by LC-MS. The taste intensity of the samples was detected by taste sensors. HHP resulted in a high accumulation of free amino acids in green tea leaves, which was likely due to proteolysis. In particular, theanine synthesis may have been promoted by an increase in the concentration of substrates during HHP. Compared to steaming, HHP enhanced umami richness, and inhibited bitterness and astringency.     

Comparison of microbiological loads and physicochemical properties of raw milk treated with single-/multiple-cycle high hydrostatic pressure and ultraviolet-C light

The effects of ultraviolet-C radiation (UV-C, 11.8?W/m²), single-cycle and multiple-cycle high hydrostatic pressure (HHP at 200, 400 or 600?MPa) on microbial load and physicochemical quality of raw milk were evaluated. Reductions of aerobic plate count (APC) and coliform count (CC) by HHP were more than 99.9% and 98.7%, respectively. Inactivation efficiency of microorganisms increased with pressure level. At the same pressure level, two-cycle treatments caused lower APC, but did not show CC differences compared with single-cycle treatments. Reductions of APC and CC by UV-C were somewhere between 200?MPa and 400/600?MPa. Both HHP and UV-C significantly decreased lightness and increased pH, but did not change soluble solids content and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances’ values. Two 2.5?min cycles of HHP at 600?MPa caused minimum APC and CC, and maximum conductivity. Compared with HHP, UV-C markedly increased protein oxidation and reduced darkening.     

Effects of high hydrostatic pressure on β-glucan content,swelling power,starch damage,and pasting properties of high-β-glucan barley flour

ABSTRACT

The effects of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) on the physicochemical properties of high-β-glucan barley flour were investigated in the present study. Dough samples were made from two types of barley flour with low and high β-glucan content, respectively, and treated with HHP (200–600?MPa) for 10?min. Although the elevation of pasting properties for the samples treated at 600?MPa was reduced to the same extent as that in wheat flour at normal atmospheric pressure, β-glucan content was maintained regardless of the pressure applied. The significant increase in starch damage of the dough samples at 550 and 600?MPa was confirmed by the results of microscopic observation, which revealed that elliptical starch granules were cracked and damaged in samples with low β-glucan at 600?MPa, and in samples with high β-glucan content at 400?MPa or more. X-ray diffraction patterns of the samples treated at 600?MPa indicated the formation of amylose-lipid complexes that were considered to inhibit the elevation of viscosity.     

Enrichment of free amino acid content and reduction of astringent taste compounds in soybean by high hydrostatic pressure

ABSTRACT

We investigated the effect of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) on the distribution of free amino acids and isoflavones in soybean immediately after pressure treatment (100–600?MPa, 10–60?min). HHP-treatment at 200 and 300?MPa resulted in high accumulation of free amino acids. Additionally, Gly, Val, and Pro levels increased even after HHP of 400?MPa. The application of HHP-treatment to soybean decreased sources of an astringent taste such as genistein-, daizein-, and glycitein-type molecules under all pressure conditions over 200?MPa. High accumulation of free amino acids with specific pressure–time conditions would be caused by the acceleration of proteolysis and specific amino acid metabolism. We concluded that HHP alone with no subsequent storage enabled the enrichment of specific amino acids such as GABA, Glu, Lys, and Pro in soybean. Soybean with enrichment of these amino acids and improved taste should be an innovative component of functional foods.     

Effects of High-Pressure Treatment on the Sensory Quality of White Grape Juice

The effects of high-pressure treatment on the colour (objective measurement) and sensory characteristics of white grape juice were studied during storage at 4 °C for 60 days. Grape juice was subjected to three different treatments: 400 or 500 MPa at 2 u °C, and 400 MPa at 40 °C during 10 min. Untreated juice was used as control. Colour parameters (CIE L * a * b *), hue angle (tan m 1 b */ a *), chroma {( a * 2 + b * 2 ) 1/2 }, luminosity Q *{(10 2 log( L *) + 100} and saturation S *( C */ L *) were measured. Juices were evaluated for sweetness, acidity, off-flavour and aroma. High-pressure treatments did not affect the colour parameters of juice, and similar sensory characteristics were observed in both control and treated samples on the first day. The colour and sensory characteristics of pressure-treated samples remained more stable than those of the control juice during 60 days of storage. The control juice was slightly fermented developing some changes in flavour and colour.     

Effect of ultrasound and high hydrostatic pressure (US/HHP) on the degradation of dextran catalyzed by dextranase

In our current research work, the effect of combination of ultrasonic irradiation and high hydrostatic pressure (US/HHP) on the enzymatic activity and enzymatic hydrolysis kinetic parameters of dextran catalytic by dextranase were investigated. Furthermore, the effects of US/HHP on the structure of dextranase were also discussed with the aid of fluorescence spectroscopy and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy. The maximum hydrolysis of dextran was observed under US (40 W at 25 kHz for 15 min) combined with HHP (400 MPa for 25 min), in which the hydrolysis of dextran increased by 163.79% compared with the routine thermal incubation at 50 °C. Results also showed that, V_max and K_M values, as well as, k_cat of dextranase under US/HHP treatment were higher than that under US, HHP and thermal incubation at 50 °C, indicated that, the substrate is converted into the product at an increased rate when compared with the incubation at 50 °C. Compared to the enzymatic reaction under US, HHP, and routine thermal incubation, dextranase enzymatic reaction under US/HHP treatment showed decreases in Ea, ΔG and ΔH, however small increase in ΔS value was observed. In addition, fluorescence and CD spectra reflected that US/HHP treatment had increased the number of tryptophan on dextranase surface with increased α-helix by 19.80% and reduced random coil by 6.94% upon US/HHP-treated dextranase protein compared to the control, which were helpful for the improvement of its activity. These results indicated that, the combination of US and HHP treatments could be an effective method for improving the hydrolysis of dextran in many industrial applications including sugar manufacturing processes.     

Evaluation of high hydrostatic pressure effects on bovine red blood cells and platelets

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) on the stability of red blood cells (RBCs) and platelets. Bovine blood cells (n=5) were treated with the pressure of 55, 110, 154 and 220 MPa at 25 °C for 5 min. Light microscopy, atomic force microscopy and flow cytometry studies revealed that RBCs were morphologically stable up until the 220 MPa pressure treatments, at which surface modifications were observed. The platelets were found to be less stable than RBCs. HHP application did not cause any significant change in the signal intensity, band area and frequency values of the infrared bands with the exception that a significant variation was observed in the area of the cholesterol band. No statistically significant variations were observed in the secondary structure elements due to HHP treatment according to the artificial neural network study based on the FTIR data.     

Preparation of black soybean (Glycine max L) extract with enhanced levels of phenolic compound and estrogenic activity using high hydrostatic pressure and pre-germination

We investigated the influence of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatment on the estrogenic properties and conversion of the phenolic compounds in germinated black soybean. The black soybean was germinated for two- or four-days, and then subjected to HHP at 0.1, 50, 100, or 150?MPa for 12 or 24?h. The highest total polyphenol content (3.9?mg GAE/g), flavonoid content (0.8?mg?CE/g), phenolic acid content (940?±?18.96?μg/g), and isoflavonone content (2600?μg/g) were observed after germination for four days and HHP treatment at 100?MPa for 24?h. In terms of isoflavone composition, the malonyl, acetyl and β-glycoside contents decreased, while the aglycone content increased with HHP. The highest proliferative effect (150%) is observed at four days germination and HHP treatment at 100?MPa. These results suggest that application of HHP may provide useful information regarding the utility of black soybean as alternative hormone replacement therapy.     

The effect of high hydrostatic pressure on the physiological and biochemical properties of pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) seedlings

High hydrostatic pressure is a non-thermal food processing technology, which also has several successful applications in different areas besides food processing. In this study, Capsicum annuum L. (pepper) seeds are subjected to 50, 100, 200 and 300?MPa pressure for 5?min at 25°C and the seedlings of HHP processed seeds are used to compare percentage of seed germination and biochemical properties such as chlorophyll a, b and a/b, proline content, total protein, carotenoid, malondialdehyde, glucose, fructose and phenolic compounds concentrations. As a result of the study, it was observed that there are remarkable changes in terms of biochemical properties especially for seedlings, whose seeds were pressurized at 200 and 300?MPa. More detailed studies are needed to put forward the mechanism behind the changes in biochemical properties.     

High pressure and thermal pasteurization effects on sweet cherry juice microbiological stability and physicochemical properties

This study evaluated high pressure processing (P1 – 400?MPa/5?min; P2 – 550?MPa/2?min) and thermal pasteurization (TP – 70°C/30?s) effects on sweet cherry juice's microbiological and physicochemical parameters, during four weeks of refrigerated storage. All treatments reduced the microbiological load to undetectable levels not affecting total soluble solids and titratable acidity. The pH increased with all treatments, however, it decreased during storage. Phenols were differently affected: TP increased them by 6%, P1 had no effect while P2 decreased them by 11%. During storage, phenols in control and TP samples decreased by 26% and 20%, P1 samples decreased them by 11% whereas P2 showed no variation. TP had no effect on anthocyanins, while pressure treatments increased them by 8%. Anthocyanins decreased during storage, particularly in the control and P1 (decreasing 41%). All treatments had no effect on antioxidant activity until the 14th day, thereafter high pressure processing samples showed the highest antioxidant activity.     

Listeria monocytogenes cells injured by high hydrostatic pressure and their recovery in nutrient-rich or -free medium during cold storage

ABSTRACT

Cells of Listeria monocytogenes suspended in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) were treated by high hydrostatic pressure (HHP; 500?MPa, 25°C, 10?min), diluted by ten folds using trypticase soy broth (TSB) or PBS, and stored at cold temperatures of 0–15°C. Viable cell count in TSB increased logarithmically close to the initial count at each storage temperature, while that in PBS increased temporarily and subsequently decreased to almost nondetectable level except the case at 15°C, where it showed logarithmic increase thereafter. Based on proliferation experiments where their healthy cells were inoculated to TSB or to PBS containing their heat-killed dead cells, it was suggested that increase in the viable count of HHP-treated cells in TSB and PBS could be ascribed to the recovery of colony forming ability and/or proliferation depending on the cold storage temperature.     

Effects of pressure and temperature on the survival rate of adherent A-172 cells

Preservation of cells under high pressure is an important alternative to cryopreservation. We studied the effect of temperature (4, 25, 37°C) and pressure (0.1–350 MPa) on the survival rate of A-172 glioblastoma cells. The survival rate was not changed by brief (10 min) pressurization of up to 150 MPa, but the survival rate began to decrease from 150 MPa, and most of the A-172 cells died when treated with over 200 MPa. Lengthy pressurization (4 days) at lower pressure (upto 20.1 MPa) without medium exchange showed complex results. The survival rate of cells preserved at 25°C showed two maxima at 1.6 and 20.1 MPa. After preservation, cells adhered and proliferated in the same way as normal cells when cultured at 37°C in a CO₂ incubator. The other two temperatures, 4° and 37°C, showed no maximum survival rate. Therefore, a high survival rate can be maintained with high pressure treatment.     

Is high pressure treatment able to modify the allergenicity of the largemouth bass allergens?

The aim of this paper is to study the influence of high pressure treatment on the structural changes and allergenicity of largemouth bass. We treated the allergens at 100, 200, 300 and 400 MPa for 15 min and at 300 MPa for 5, 10, 15, 20 and 30 min at 20 °C. The treated samples from largemouth bass were tested for their IgE-binding properties by combining Sodium dodecyl sulfate-Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) with western blotting (WB) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Circular dichroism analysis was performed to characterize the structural change. In summary, we can determine that the greatest structure changes were found for samples treated by 400 MPa for 15 min. High pressure treatment did change the structure, subunit composition and molecular weight of largemouth bass allergens, but it did not change the allergenicity of the allergens.     

Inactivation of Staphylococcus aureus and native microflora in human milk by high pressure processing

The storage of unpreserved food, including breast milk, is associated with the growth of microorganisms, including pathogenic bacteria. It is therefore necessary to use suitable processes to eliminate pathogenic microorganisms and reduce the total microbial count in order to ensure product safety for consumers. In the present study, samples of milk obtained from volunteers donating to the human milk bank were artificially contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538. This bacteria was the model microorganism of choice, being relatively resistant to high pressure as well as posing the most serious risk to infant health. The results obtained show that high pressure processing can reduce the count of S. aureus by about 5?log units at 4°C and about 8?log units at 50°C, and totally eliminate Enterobacteriaceae after 5?min of treatment, and result in a total microbial count reduction after 10?min treatment at 500?MPa at 20°C and 50°C. This suggests the possibility of this technology being applied to ensure the adequate safety and quality of human breast milk in human milk banks.