EMU: Acquisition of five multi-user equipment for characterization of foods, colloids and biomaterials at FZEA-USP

• Grant number: 23/17095-6
• Support Opportunities: Research Infrastructure Program - Small Medium Sized
• Start date: September 01, 2024
• End date: August 31, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Paulo José do Amaral Sobral
• Grantee: Paulo José do Amaral Sobral
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Pirassununga , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Carmen Sílvia Fávaro Trindade ; Fernanda Maria Vanin ; Giovana Tommaso ; Marco Antonio Trindade ; Milena Martelli Tosi ; Rodrigo Rodrigues Petrus

Abstract

This proposal has the active participation of six ZEA Associate Researchers. Six professors are accredited in the Food Engineering Graduate Program, and one is accredited in the Materials Engineering and Science Graduate Program, both at FZEA-USP.DSC is used to characterize the thermal properties of foods, colloids and biomaterials. Numerous projects have been carried out at FZEA, generating articles published in high impact journals with data on the glass transition of biopolymeric films; denaturation temperature of proteins from beef, pork, rabbit and fish; sol-gel transition temperature of colloidal systems based on gelatin, starch and pectin, among others; of chocolate fat polymorphism; the fusion of water in fruit pulp, among others.The Food Fiber Analyzer is an extremely important equipment for food analysis. Dietary fiber is defined as a macroconstituent of foods that includes cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, gums, modified celluloses, mucilage, oligosaccharides, pectin and associated secondary substances, which are not digested in the human gastrointestinal tract. Regular consumption of this macro constituent has been related to the control of diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, among others. The availability of automated equipment that meets international standards will be extremely important to serve the scientific community and also private companies.By mastering knowledge of the amino acid composition of plant or animal proteins, fundamental competence is acquired for the development of research in the food area. The amino acid analyzer requested in this project will serve numerous research projects such as: partial replacement of meat with insect meal; development of hybrid meat products and/or plant analogues, aiming to compare the nutritional profile in terms of essential amino acids; analysis of free amino acids from samples subjected to in vitro digestion or from food samples extracted with buffered saline solutions; projects related to the prospecting of non-conventional vegetable protein sources arising, for example, from agro-industrial co-products and non-commercial materials from the Cerrado and Amazon biomes; development of processes for extraction and purification of plant proteins, among other applications.Regarding the microplate, it consists of a device with small wells in which reactions occur separately and under controlled conditions, e.g., temperature, stirring and absence of light. In the microplate, these reactions convert the presence of an analyte or the progression of biochemical processes into optical signals. The reader allows simultaneous and assertive micro volumetric analyzes on a much larger scale than a conventional spectrophotometer. This equipment is not available at FZEA and can serve users who need to determine the antioxidant capacity of their samples using ABTS, FRAP, ORAC, TEAC and TPC methods.Finally, the electrostatic spray dryer is an equipment that has similarities with the conventional spray dryer, as it converts liquid samples into powders. However, it operates under low temperature conditions and under a nitrogen atmosphere. Therefore, unlike the conventional spray dryer, it operates under very mild process conditions, which help to preserve volatile and/or thermo-sensitive substances. For example, spray drying electrostatically can preserve the viability of microorganisms and avoid the inactivation of enzymes. This is possible because the feed or liquid is forced through a narrow atomizing nozzle where it is exposed to an electrical field. When liquid droplets are electrically charged, they are attracted to an electrode with an opposite charge, causing the solvent to evaporate, leading to the formation of a powder consisting of dense dry particles. (AU)