Alireza Abbaspourrad

Cornell University | CU · Department of Food Science

One‐pot multicomponent reactions (MCRs) are a valuable strategy to synthesize functional covalent organic frameworks (COFs) in a single step. Most reported COF syntheses involve solvothermal processes, and because of the harsh reaction conditions, such as high temperature or high pressure, large‐scale production of COFs has been limited. The synthe...

Droplets of one fluid in a second, immiscible fluid are typically spherical in shape due to the interfacial tension between the two fluids. Shear forces can lead to droplet deformation when they are subjected to flow, and these effects can be further modified when the droplet is stabilized by a surfactant due to a flow-induced gradients in the surf...

The escalating presence of per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water poses urgent public health concerns, necessitating effective removal. This study presents a groundbreaking approach, using viologen to synthesize covalent organic framework nanospheres: MELEM‐COF and MEL‐COF. Characterized by highly crystalline features, these n...

The poor thermal stability of lactoferrin (LF) hinders its bioavailability and use in commercial food products. To preserve LF from thermal denaturation, complexation with other biopolymers has been studied. Here we present the complex formation conditions, structural stability, and functional protection of LF by α‐lactalbumin (α‐LA). The formation...

A thermally stable co-delivery system for lactoferrin (LF) and iron(II) was developed to address iron deficiency anemia. Complexes were formed between LF, succinylated sodium caseinate (S.NaCas) and FeSO4 with high yield (∼85%). LF-S.NaCas-Fe complexes achieved loading capacities for iron(II) between 2.5 and 12 mg g–1and LF loading capacities betwe...

The contribution of a hollow structure on the rheological behavior of granular suspensions remains un‐investigated due to the challenge of water impermeability. Here starch is used to fabricate water‐permeable hollow particles, as a model for granular suspensions and investigated the resulting microstructures and rheological behavior. The hollow st...

The idea of building large structures from small building blocks has had a long history in the human imagination, from the beautifully intricate shells assembled from silica by unicellular algae to the Egyptian pyramids built from stone. Carrying this idea into the food industry has important implications. Here, we introduce a Pickering emulsion pl...

Adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) can be used to make bacteria less susceptible to oxidative stress. An alternative to large batch scale ALE cultures is to use microfluidic platforms, which are often more economical and more efficient. Microfluidic ALE platforms have shown promise, but many have suffered from subpar cell passaging mechanisms and...

The first synthesis and comprehensive characterization of two vinyl tetrazine‐linked covalent organic frameworks (COF), TA‐COF‐1 and TA‐COF‐2, are reported. These materials exhibited high crystallinity and high specific surface areas of 1323 and 1114 m ² g –1 . The COFs demonstrated favorable band positions, and narrow band gaps suitable for light‐...

Woven covalent organic frameworks (COF) possess entangled 3D frameworks. The metallated version of these structures contains spatially isolated Cu(I) centers and promising optoelectronic properties because of metal‐to‐ligand charge transfer (MLCT). However, despite their potential, woven COFs have not yet been investigated as photocatalysts. In thi...

A core–shell hydrogel bead system was designed to maintain the catalytic activity of phytase and protect its enzymatic functionality from heat treatment. The designed structure consists of a chitosan-phytase complex core and an alginate-carrageenan hydrogel shell. The core–shell hydrogel was optimized to improve phytase encapsulation efficiency and...

To understand the impact of sperm speed as they swim against the flow on fertilization rates, we created conditions similar to the female reproductive tract (FRT) on a microfluidic platform...

Generalized shrinking particle (SPM) and shrinking core (SCM) models were developed to the kinetics of heterogenous enzymatic degradation of polymer microparticles in a continuous microflow system. This enzymatic degradation was performed in a microfluidic device designed to both physically separate and immobilize the microparticles. Then time-reso...

Lactoferrin (LF), the main iron-binding protein of milk, has important nutritional, biological, and pharmaceutical properties. It is an essential nutritional component of newborn diets and also for adult health. Small amounts of lactoferrin can be found in whey, a nutritionally and biologically useful byproduct of the dairy industry. Although the a...

Curcumin dibutanoate (CUDB) is a new oil soluble bidentate ligand which shows higher stability against heat and oxidation compared to curcumin. The oil solubility of this ligand increased an order of magnitude over curcumin. This biomolecule showed high digestibility in a simulated intestinal trial and was hydrolyzed in the presence of porcine panc...

Natural animal-based flavors have great appeal to consumers and have broad applications in the food industry. In this review, we summarized findings related to bacon and Cheddar cheese flavors' components and their precursors, reaction mechanisms, influential factors, and characterization methods. The results show that free sugars, free amino acids...

Effective delivery of the bioactive protein, lactoferrin (LF), remains a challenge as it is sensitive to environmental changes and easily denatured during heating, restricting its application in functional food products. To overcome these challenges, we formulated novel polyelectrolyte ternary complexes of LF with gelatin (G) and negatively charged...

Study question Does selecting human spermatozoa using a dynamic microfluidic system impact semen parameters and genomic characteristics? Summary answer Flow rate adjustment in a dynamic microfluidic device selects spermatozoa with superior DNA integrity. It also appears to select a higher proportion of Y-chromosome-bearing spermatozoa. What is kn...

The female reproductive tract (FRT) continuously modulates mammalian sperm motion by releasing various clues as sperm migrate toward the fertilization site. An existing gap in our understanding of sperm migration within the FRT is a quantitative picture of how sperm respond to and navigate the biochemical clues within the FRT. In this experimental...

The synthesis of a fluorescent covalent organic framework (COF) using perylene and pyrene building blocks (PEPy‐COF), via a one‐pot condensation reaction is reported. PEPy‐COF is crystallized into 2D nanosheets with a cubic and prismatic crystalline morphology and demonstrates structural stability at temperatures up to 500 °C. The structural morpho...

The increasing pressure for lithium resources from the electric vehicle and nuclear energy industries means that new technologies to separate Mg2+ from Li+ from salt water are in demand. To address this need, we fabricated lithium pyrene squarate covalent organic frameworks (Li-SQCOFs) to separate Mg2+/Li+ mixtures from salt water. We optimized the...

Rapid identification of antibiotic-resistant bacteria will play a key role in solving the global antibiotic crisis by providing a route to targeted antibiotic administration. However, current bacterial infection diagnoses take up to 3 days which can lead to antibiotic treatment that is less effective. Here we report a microfluidic system with a lad...

Finely controlled flow forces in extrusion-based additive manufacturing can be exploited to program the self-assembly of malleable nanostructures in soft materials by integrating bottom-up design into a top-down processing approach. Here, we leverage the processing parameters offered by direct ink-writing (DIW) to reconfigure the photonic chiral ne...

Thaumatin, a potent sweet tasting protein extracted from the Katemfe Plant, is emerging as a natural alternative to synthetic non-nutritive sweeteners and flavor enhancer. As a food additive, its stability within the food matrix during thermal processing is of great interest to the food industry. When heated under neutral or basic conditions, thaum...

Hemp seed protein isolates (HPI) were extracted from seven commercial hemp cultivars, a Cornell breeding line, and a commercial hemp heart product, and their composition and functional properties were investigated. HPI contained different ratios of edestin, vicilin, and albumin proteins, which affected protein solubility and functionality. Higher p...

Enzymatic degradation of polymers has advantages over standard degradation methods, such as soil burial and weathering, which are time-consuming and cannot provide time-resolved observations. We have developed a microfluidic device to study the degradation of single microparticles. The enzymatic degradation of poly (1,4-butylene adipate-co-terephth...

Although incredible progress in the field of Janus particles over the last three decades has delivered many promising smart-material prototypes, from cancer-targeting drug delivery vehicles to self-motile nanobots, their real-world applications have been somewhat tempered by concerns over scalability and sustainability. In this study, we adapt a si...

Phycocyanin (PC), a spirulina-derived protein–chromophore complex, suffers from poor techno-functional properties and is highly susceptible to aggregation and color changes upon heating and pH fluctuations. We tackled these issues by modifying PC via PEGylation. Electrophoresis and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy proved successful conjugati...

Acidic environments and light exposure have been known to have detrimental effects on phycocyanin (PC), a spirulina-derived chromoprotein popular among food and pharmaceutical manufacturers. We developed a water-in-oil-in-water (W1/O/W2) double emulsion system for mitigating the discoloration and precipitation issues of PC at pH 3.0 and under light...

Catechin is a flavonoid naturally present in numerous dietary products and fruits (e.g., apples, berries, grape seeds, kiwis, green tea, red wine, etc.) and has previously been shown to be an antioxidant and beneficial for the gut microbiome. To further enhance the health benefits, bioavailability, and stability of catechin, we synthesized and char...

The properties of metal organic frameworks (MOFs), surface area, porosity, and functionality make them an ideal material for heterogenous catalysis. We developed a MnO 2 @quasi-MOF (MnO 2 @q-MOF) catalyst by incorporating MnO 2 into a MIL-53 (Fe) structure with reduction of KMnO 4 to MnO 2 followed by a mild heat treatment at 300 °C. MnO 2 @q-MOF s...

Antibiotics are often prescribed before pathogens are identified and susceptibility to the prescribed drug is confirmed; laboratory results may take up to 3 days. Using rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) this timeline can be compressed. We designed a microfluidic ladder-based system that generates a twofold serial dilution of antibiotics...

Physicochemical conditions play a key role in the development of biofilm removal strategies. This study presents an integrated, double-layer, high-throughput microfluidic chip for real-time screening of the combined effect of antibiotic concentration and fluid shear stress (FSS) on biofilms. Biofilms of Escherichia coli LF82 and Pseudomonas aerugin...

Starch as a food-grade thickener has been commonly used in food products to modulate textural properties. Improving viscosity-enhancing ability, so as to be able to use less starch for the same texture, has been considered as an approach to reduce the dietary consumption of carbohydrates. We have positively charged amaranth starch (∼1 μm) and negat...

The effects of germination on the functional properties of hemp seed protein isolates was evaluated in this study. Significant seed storage protein degradation was observed after three days of germination, while protein surface charge was altered after one day of germination. Protein solubility increased in neutral to slightly acidic pH, with 5-day...

Nicotinamide riboside (NR) acts as a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) precursor where NR supplementation has previously been shown to be beneficial. Thus, we synthesized and characterized nicotinamide riboside tributyrate chloride (NRTBCl, water-soluble) and nicotinamide riboside trioleate chloride (NRTOCl, oil-soluble) as two new ester der...

Vegetable oils with varying saturated fat levels were inoculated with Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG), subjected to different heat treatments in the absence and presence of inulin and stored for 12 months at room temperature. After storage, the heat-treated probiotics actively grew to high concentrations after removal of the oils and recultur...

A new method of alliin infusion into potato strips to generate garlic flavor upon frying was investigated. Potato strips were treated using pulsed electric field (PEF) and then allin was infused into the treated strips using immersion, ultrasound, or vacuum assisted infusion. Results showed that under lower PEF intensities (0.250, 0.650 and 1.250 k...

The use of phycocyanin (PC), a protein-based blue colorant, in acidic food products is limited by its susceptibility to aggregation at around its isoelectric point (pI ∼4). We modified the pI and functional properties of PC by succinylation and protein-glutaminase (PG) deamidation. The conditions for deamidation and succinylation were systematicall...

On-going demand for novel and more efficient inertial microfluidic devices has been driven by their promising results and diverse applications, specifically in high-throughput analysis of large sample volumes. Here, we propose a novel sheathless inertial microfluidic cell separation device coupled with a structure for tunable extraction. The main b...

N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) has health benefits attributed to its antioxidant properties and disulfide bond cleavage ability. Unfortunately, solutions of NAC are acidic with an undesirable taste and an unpleasant aftertaste. A method for slowing NAC release in water was developed using a solid phase wax coating. A coating of natural waxes, using food gr...

Objectives The primary aim of this study was to assess the effects of intra-amniotic administration of NRCl and two new derivatives (NRTBCl and NRTOCl) on BBM functionality via the evaluation of duodenal gene expression of BBM biomarkers, specifically essential digestive, absorptive and immune proteins, and the effects on cecal microbiome. Methods...

Avocado seed waste has increased as avocado products have become commercialized since the seed is considered inedible. However, by exploring the potential uses of the seed, the unrecyclable waste produced by the avocado industry can be reduced. This paper aims to review and discuss current literature on the food and cosmetic applications of avocado...

Starch, as a staple carbohydrate, is frequently used as a thickener to enhance food texture. As such, there is an increasing interest in studying starch modification to improve its thickening ability. Instead of the conventional mechanism of swelling-based thickening, the present work presents an alternative using starch-based patchy particles as a...

The controlled formation of nanoparticles with optimum characteristics and functional aspects has proven successful via peptide-mediated nanoparticle synthesis. However, the effects of the peptide sequence and binding motif on surface features and physicochemical properties of nanoparticles are not well-understood. In this study, we investigate in...

Pulsed electric field (PEF) processing is an emerging non-thermal technology that shows the potential to improve food quality and maintain stability. However, the attributes and retrogradation properties of food products made of PEF-treated rice grains are still unknown. In the current study, glutinous rice gels (GR-G) and sweetened glutinous rice...

The encapsulation of small hydrophilic molecules offers advantages for the delivery of hydrophilic food supplements and food ingredients. These advantages include: masking off-flavors, reducing astringency, and controlling release profiles. We used an internal phase separation (IPS) method for simultaneous granulation and encapsulation of a small h...

Metallic nanoparticles (MNPs), represented by nanoparticles of noble metals and their alloys, metal oxides and sulfides, have broad applications in various fields due to their excellent catalytic and sensing properties. However, their synthesis is usually accompanied by harsh conditions, the use of harmful chemicals and other unfavorable factors. N...

Lactoferrin (LF) is a multifunctional protein in the transferrin family that has been widely used in food and pharmaceutical products. However, it is susceptible to denaturation during thermal processing, which can diminish the functionality and bioavailability of LF in the final product. Coacervation of LF with biopolymers has been demonstrated as...

The female reproductive tract simultaneously guides and selects high-quality sperm using rheotaxis in mammalian species. Sperm quality, however, is traditionally evaluated only by their movement velocities and concentration using computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA), which ignores sperm rheotaxis. Here, by mimicking the female reproductive tract...

Rebaudioside (Reb A) is a natural high-intensity sweetener available for commercial use. Its application has been hampered, however, by its unnatural sweetness profile and a bitter aftertaste at higher concentration thresholds. The goal of this research was to mitigate these shortcomings by increasing the sweetening power, thus lowering the amount...

Plagued with unpleasant aftertastes, bitterness, and mouth-puckering astringency, the utilization of sweeteners as regular sugar replacements has met with limited success. In this paper, we investigated mucin-sweetener interactions as a potential cause of the limitation of several popular sweeteners. We employed a QCM-D technique and rheological me...

Cumulus removal (CR) is a central prerequisite step for many protocols involved in the assisted reproductive technology (ART) such as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and preimplantation genetic testing (PGT). The most prevalent CR technique is based upon laborious manual pipetting, which suffers from inter-operator variability and therefore...

Although medical advancements have successfully helped a lot of couples with their infertility by assisted reproductive technologies (ART), sperm selection, a crucial stage in ART, has remained challenging. Therefore, we aimed to investigate novel sperm separation methods, specifically microfluidic systems, as they do sperm selection based on sperm...

Nicotinamide riboside chloride (NRCl) is an effective form of vitamin B3. However, it cannot be used in ready-to-drink (RTD) beverages or high-water activity foods because of its intrinsic instability in water. To address this issue, we synthesized nicotinamide riboside trioleate chloride (NRTOCl) as a new hydrophobic nicotinamide riboside (NR) der...

The significance of dairy in human health and nutrition is gaining significant momentum as consumers continue to desire wholesome, nutritious foods to fulfill their health and wellness needs. Bovine milk not only consists of all the essential nutrients required for growth and development, it also provides a broad range of bioactive components that...

Significance Mammalian sperm migration within the female reproductive tract requires navigational mechanisms, through which sperm respond to biophysical and biochemical cues. Previous studies revealed that biophysical cues for sperm in the female reproductive tract include fluid flow, wall architecture, and temperature gradients. Here, by exploring...

In this work, a palladium binding peptide, Pd4, has been used for the synthesis of catalytically active palladium-decorated gold (Pd-on-Au) nanoparticles (NPs) and palladium-gold (Pd x Au 100Àx) alloy NPs exhibiting high nitrite degradation efficiency. Pd-on-Au NPs with 20% to 300% surface coverage (sc%) of Au showed catalytic activity commensurate...

Phycocyanin, a natural blue-colored protein–chromophore complex, forms insoluble aggregates under acidic conditions and loses blue hue during heating. Targeting these issues, phycocyanin was complexed with six polysaccharides (κ-/ι-/λ-carrageenans, xanthan gum, high-methoxyl pectin, and guar gum), respectively; the colloidal and color behaviors of...