Pedro Miguel Silva

University of Minho · Institute for Biotechnology and Bioengineering - Centre of Biological Engineering

Probiotics are live microorganisms that when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit to the host. However, to accomplish this positive influence on Human health, probiotics should survive to the passage through the upper digestive tract in large numbers to unsure a desired beneficial effect in the host. Several encapsulation method...

Omega-3 (ω-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids are highly susceptible to oxidation, have an intense odour and poor water solubility, which makes its direct application in foods extremely difficult. In order to reduce its oxidation process and improve the stability in an aqueous medium, protein-based nanoemulsions were produced and characterized. Lactofe...

Olive oil has recognized health benefits but lacks structural resilience to act in a similar fashion as do the typically used triglycerides (TAGs) when applied in food manufacturing. Therefore, olive oil structuring is critical to widening its use as a healthier alternative in spreadable products. Foreseeing the development of an application for th...

Electrohydrodynamic (EHD) processing allows the production of micro and nano structures with high surface-area-to-volume ratio from biopolymers and environmentally friendly solvents. Such structures hold a very significant potential for application in the food area. The aim of this work was to assess the role of solution parameters in the formation...

Recently, plant-derived proteins have increased in interest and use owing to a combination of interesting properties and industry-wide trends to replace animal-derived proteins. Electrohydrodynamic processing can be used to develop microstructures and nanostructures of plant proteins in a facile manner and, thus, increase their opportunities in the...

Encapsulation can be used as a strategy to protect and control the release of bioactive extracts. In this work, an extract from Spirulina sp. LEB-18, rich in phenolic compounds, was encapsulated in biopolymeric particles (i.e., composed of alginate) and characterized concerning their thermal behavior using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), s...

The nutritional quality of processed foods is being increasingly questioned by consumers and the trend toward diets that promote health and well‐being has thus grown significantly. With this in mind, food science has sought to develop products replacing ingredients that can be harmful to consumers. This is not an easy task because, besides health‐...

Functional materials have become key drivers in the development of multiple high-end technologies. Electrohydrodynamic processing (EHDP) is a straightforward method to generate polymer micro- and nanostructures that can be applied to the food, pharmaceutical, environmental, and biomedical areas, among others, since these can yield materials with hi...

Electrohydrodynamic processing (EHDP) allows the use of a wide range of biopolymers and solvents, including food-grade biopolymers and green solvents, for the development of micro- and nanostructures. These structures present a high surface-area-to-volume ratio and different shapes and morphologies. The aim of this work was to design and produce hy...

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) is native to the Andean region and has attracted a global growing interest due its unique nutritional value. The protein content of quinoa grains is higher than other cereals while it has better distribution of essential amino acids. It can be used as an alternative to milk proteins. Additionally, quinoa contains...

Edible oils have potential health benefits in comparison to saturated and/or trans fats employed in food products. Conferring structure to these oils allows a greater range of applications, improving its applicability, such as spreadable products. The aim of this work was developing an olive oil organogel, foreseeing its application in the food ind...

Edible coatings have potential to reduce postharvest losses of fruit such as tomato. In this study, the effects of nanolaminate coatings incorporated with extracts of Flourensia cernua, an endemic plant of the arid and semi-arid regions of Mexico, has been investigated. Ethanol extracts of F. cernua (FcE) were prepared and incorporated into polyele...

Edible oils have potential health benefits when compared to saturated and/or trans fats typically used in food products. In order to widen their use as spreadable products, structuring these oils is a requirement. Thus, the aim of this work consisted in the development of an olive-oil organogel, foreseeing its application in the food industry. Oliv...

Hybrid gels can be used for controlled delivery of bioactives and for textural and rheological modification of foods. In this regard the hydrogel:oleogel ratio and gel development methodologies showed to be the aspects that influence most of their properties. The present study shows how different fractions of oleogel can influence the hydrogel matr...

Amaranthus spp. is a highly nutritive pseudocereal, rich in macronutrients and micronutrients, including vitamins and minerals. Amaranth grain is rich in essential amino acids, particularly lysine, with high nutritional quality. In addition, recent research demonstrates that Amaranthus spp. essential nutrients, such as phytochemicals, have potentia...

Application of chitosan-based coatings on frozen salmon - Sensory assessment and retail simulation approach

Analysis of sensory effects of chitosan-based coatings applied on frozen salmon over six-months’ storage

Hybrid gels are biphasic systems formed by conjugating hydrogels and oleogels. The mixture of water-based and oil-based gels provides distinct and unique characteristics to hybrid gels, and based on the structurant molecules and mixture ratio used during their production, different textural and rheological properties can be obtained. Hybrid gels re...

Introduction: During retail storage, frozen fish products can suffer temperature variations that lead to a decrease in quality. These temperature variations can be caused by a multitude of reasons, some of which are easy to control, while others are due to unforeseen circumstances. In either case, thermal stress can often affect frozen fish product...

The perishable nature of fish, with an increase in fish consumption in recent years, led to the improvement of fish preservation techniques. Chitosan coatings adds to the traditional water glazing. The effect of a chitosan solution of 1.5% on the sensory properties of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) was studied over six months of storage. The sensory...