BIOPROCESS DEVELOPMENT FOR THE PRODUCTION OF HIGHLY FUNCTIONAL SOY MILK

• Grant number: 14/17367-7
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: March 01, 2016
• End date: December 31, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Nutrition - Nutrition Biochemistry
• Principal Investigator: Juliana Alves Macedo
• Grantee: Juliana Alves Macedo
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos (FEA). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Gabriela Alves Macedo

Abstract

Soy attracts considerable attention in the current global economic scenario due to their high nutritional properties and potentially beneficial to human health effects, which are mainly attributed to isoflavones. This class of heterocyclic phenols is known for its biological activities, such as estrogenic, antioxidant and antitumor activities, and the aglycone forms are more active than glycosylated. However, recent studies have shown that the clinical effectiveness of isoflavones is related to the ability of the individual in producing Equol, a metabolite of daidzein, which according to the literature, is produced exclusively by the action of the intestinal microbiota. However, there is evidence that not all individuals are able to metabolize isoflavones to equol, with the variability attributed to differences in the composition of intestinal microflora, diet, genetic factors, among others. In this context, the soy-based products are a way to include the isoflavones in the diet, and the soymilk is a substrate that has shown the potential to produce new healthy appealing foods. Thus, in order to increase the content of bioactive isoflavones and assess the viability of biotechnological processes for the production of equol in vitro, we propose this project. Thus, in order to increase the content of bioactive isoflavones and try to produce equol in soymilk, we will investigate the application of starters and probiotic lactic acid bacteria in the fermentation of soymilk, combined with the action of the tannase obtained from Paecilomyces variotti. Moreover, the extracts obtained will be evaluated for their isoflavones composition profile and their biological activity in vitro, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and estrogenic-like activity capacity. (AU)