Objective(s): A remarkable growing effort has been conducted by several researchers to fabricate food packaging materials which are able to protect foodstuffs and enhance their shelf-life from food-borne pathogens and fungal attack which causes great damage to the food industries. Recent studies has focused on the potential applications of nano-metal oxides in food packaging area. Methods: This study reviews the latest trends and research results concerning the application of chitosan films containing some important nano-metal oxides as appropriate materials for food applications. Results: Nano-metal oxides including zinc oxide, magnesium oxide, titanium dioxide, copper oxide, iron oxide, silicon dioxide, and silica are the most common nano-metal oxides that incorporated into the chitosan film for improving its antimicrobial, physical, mechanical, and thermal properties. Conclusions: The reviewed nano-metal oxides may have positive implications for food industries, particularly in the area of food packaging based on nanoparticles to improve the physic-mechanical properties and also quality shelf-life parameters of foodstuffs.
The objective of this study was to examine the effects of carboxymethylcellulose-montmorillonite (CMC-MMT) films containing Mentha spicata essential oil (MSO; 1 and 2%) and grape seed extract (GSE; 1 and 2%) on shelf life properties of trout fillets during refrigerated preservation for two weeks. The highest and lowest bacterial population (total viable count, psychrotrophic count, Pseudomonas spp., lactic acid bacteria, and Enterobacteriaceae) as well as lipid oxidation were recorded for untreated and treated samples with CMC-MMT + MSO 2% + GSE 2%, respectively. The lowest sensory scores were recorded for unpacked fish fillets. CMC-MMT + MSO 2% + GSE 2% and CMC-MMT + MSO 2% + GSE 1% did not affect the sensory characteristics of samples.
Various natural oils/extracts and their constituents incorporated into biopolymer-based edible films as a promising technology with the knowledge that these compounds have been able to reduce microbial growth and chemical changes of packed foodstuffs. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of incorporation of Ziziphora clinopodioides essential oil (ZEO; 0, 0.25 and 0.5%) and sesame oil (SO; 0, 0.5 and 0.75%) into chitosan-flaxseed mucilage (CH-FM) film against Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella typhimurium, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli O157:H7 in vitro condition and raw minced trout fillets during refrigerated condition. The in vitro antibacterial and antioxidant properties of CH-FM films were evaluated using agar disk diffusion method and free radical scavenging activity assay, respectively. The most important constituents of ZEO were found to be carvacrol (65.22%), thymol (19.51%), ɣ-terpinene (4.63%) and p-cymene (4.86%). The lowest and highest antimicrobial effect against S. aureus, L. monocytogenes, E. coli O157:H7 and S. typhimurium were found for CH-FM films enriched with SO 0.5% (0.98-1.24 mm) and ZEO 0.5% + SO 0.75% (5.01-6.25 mm), respectively. The antioxidant property of CH-FM based films were found to be ranged 5.45% ± 0.04-37% ± 0.45. In treated trout fillets, the counts of L. monocytogenes, S. aureus, E. coli O157:H7 and S. typhimurium were 1.54-4.18, 0.34-3.35, 0.29-1.45 and 0.19-1.27 log CFU/g significantly lower than control groups after two weeks of refrigerated storage, respectively. The designated films had good antibacterial effect against some food borne pathogenic bacteria including L. monocytogenes, S. aureus, S. typhimurium and E. coli O157:H7 in raw rainbow trout fillets.
Background: Knowledge of diversity and variability of different plants is a main prerequisite and the first step in extraction of main compounds of them. The objective of the current research was to investigate main chemical composition of the essential oils of Ferulago angulata (Schlecht.) Boiss aerial parts collected from western parts of Iran (Kurdestan, Kermanshah and Lorestan provinces). Methods: Identification of the essential oils was performed by analytical gas chromatograph coupled with mass spectrometer detector (GC/MS). Results: The major compounds of essential oils of the aerial parts of plants were α-pinene (25.82%), Z-β-ocimene (23.48%), bornyl acetate (9.94%), germacrene D (4.01%), myrcene (3.06%), ɣ-terpinene (3%), limonene (2.27%) and p-cymene (1.99%). Conclusions: Our findings indicate that the main components of the essential oils belong to monoterpene hydrocarbons, oxygenated monoterpenes and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons.
Scrophularia striata belongs to the Scrophulariaceae family and widely grows in the several regions throughout the world especially Iran, Turkey and Azerbaijan. The aims of the present study were to evaluate antibacterial activity of the S. striata methanolic extract collected from west part of Iran by micro-broth dilution and agar disk diffusion assays, and also determine its antioxidant properties using 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and thiobarbituric acid (TBA) methods. The most antibacterial activity was observed against Bacillus cereus, followed by B. subtilis, S. aureus. Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli O157:H7, respectively. Moreover, the scavenging properties on DPPH radical scavenging and TBA of S. striata methanolic extract were found to be 0.92 ± 0.21 and 7.98 ± 0.23, respectively. The strong in vitro antibacterial and antioxidant activities of S. striata methanolic extract supports its traditional application in the treatments and/or prevention of different diseases.
The pH-sensitive nanofiber mats were developed based on tragacanth gum-pectin (TG-PE) as a polymer matrix, Althaea officinalis extract (AOE, 3 g/100 mL) as a natural dye, and chitin nanowhiskers (CNW, 1 and 2 g/100 mL) as a nano-reinforcement compound to investigate their utilization for spoilage control of chicken fillets. The highest tensile strength and the lowest water vapor permeability, oxygen transmission rate, water solubility, and moisture content were found in TG-PE + AOE-3 + CNW-2 nanofiber mats, recorded by 11.65 MPa, 5.12 × 10‾4 g mm/m2 h Pa, 2.27 cm3/m2 h, 4.21%, and 2.25%, respectively. According to the thermogravimetric analysis, CNW-1, CNW-2, AOE-3, AOE-3 + CNW-1, and AOE-3 + CNW-2 improved the residual mass content of TG-PE nanofiber mats at 600 °C, determined by 15.00%, 10.80%, 12.47%, 17.07%, and 19.77%, respectively. From day 0 to day 4, the color of TG-PE + AOE-3, TG-PE + AOE-3 + CNW-1, and TG-PE + AOE-3 + CNW-2 nanofibers converted from white into chestnut brown; meanwhile, the total volatile basic nitrogen, pH, total mesophilic count, and total psychrotrophic count reached 25.28 mg N/100 g, 7.11, 7.03 log CFU/g, and 5.49 log CFU/g, respectively, suggesting that the nanofibers have the capacity to monitor the freshness of chicken fillets in immediate terms.