| dc.description.abstract | The main goal of food packaging is to protect the food from physical,
chemical and biological contaminations. The environmental impact of
conventional food packaging directed research towards new packaging
strategies based on environmentally friendly and biodegradablenatural
polymers. The nature of biopolymers influences the physicochemical and
mechanical properties of films and coatingssuch as mechanical stability,
transparency, moisture and gas barrier. Generally, polysaccharides are
employed to avoid gas permeability, lipids limit water vapour transmission,
and proteins improve the mechanical stability of the structure.
Anovel way to preserve the safety of food products and prolong their shelf
life is represented by the incorporationinto edible coatingsof active
compounds, such as nutrients, antioxidants, antimicrobials, colorants, and
flavorings, which are mainly used to improve the functional properties of
coatings. However, the poor stability of these bioactive compoundsunder
processing conditions and during storage makes it necessary to use a carrier
system for the release of the compound from the coating to the product
surface.
Among severalcarriersystems adopted to protect active compounds,
hydroxyapatite crystals seem to be attractive candidates for this application.
Hydroxyapatiteis a calcium phosphate similar to that present in the human
hard tissues as regard morphology and composition. It is used especially for
the fabrication of inorganic scaffolds for bone replacement and tissue
engineering.Thanks to its structure and composition, this mineral is able to
chemically interact with different organic molecules such as proteins and
antimicrobial peptides, representing a potential carrier for the delivery of
bioactive compounds in the development of active systems.
On the basis of the above considerations, my research project has been
focused on the development and optimization of an alginate-based edible
coating enriched with hydroxyapatite crystals complexed with active
compounds, for the shelf life extension of food products.
Among active compounds, the flavonoid quercetinhas been already used in
different active systems mainly for its antioxidant capacity; However, my
interest was also focused on its potential antimicrobial activity.The results on
antimicrobial activity of quercetin glycoside compounds against
Pseudomonas fluorescens, one of the most abundant Gram negative bacteria
responsible for meat and meat products spoilageon obtained, showed a total
bacterial reduction at 1000 mg/L and 500 mg/L of quercetin,Similar results
were obtained when quercetin was loaded into hydroxyapatite structure, at
the same quercetin amount. [...] [edited by Author] | it_IT |
