Publicação
Comprehensive nutritional, chemical, and bioactive profiling of watercress for the development of functionalized pastas
| Resumo: | Functional foods play an essential role in promoting health by helping to reduce the risk of chronic degenerative and inflammatory diseases, as well as metabolic disorders. The inclusion of watercress (Nasturtium officinale R. BR.) in food products can significantly enhance their nutritional value. This vegetable is notable for its abundance of glucosinolates, carotenoids, polyphenols, and essential minerals, in addition to its traditional medicinal uses. Incorporating watercress into functional foods aligns with the trend of integrating health and nutrition, offering a unique combination of nutritional and functional benefits for the development of innovative food products. The primary objective of this thesis was to evaluate the inclusion of watercress in food products by analyzing its physical (texture, water activity, color, weight loss, and flour viscosity), nutritional (moisture, ash, total fat, crude protein, and energetic value), and chemical (free sugars, organic acids, fatty acids, mineral elements, phenolic and glucosinolate compounds) properties. The development of new pasta enriched with watercress was conducted using either freeze-dried or fresh watercress as an ingredient in substitutions of 1.5%, 3%, and 5% of wheat flour, and the final product was analysed in both raw and cooked forms. A negative control (100% wheat flour) and a sample of fresh commercial pasta were also included in the study. The incorporation of watercress affected the color parameters of the pasta, reduced solids loss during cooking, and altered weight gain and viscosity profiles. Texture changes were observed, influenced by water retention and gluten development. Moreover, there were modifications in the nutritional composition, enriching the pasta with proteins, lipids, and bioactive compounds. The retention of bioactive compounds, particularly C-glycosylated apigenins and fatty acids, was impacted by the processing methods. Thriteen glucosinolates were found in watercress extract with indicative of the large presence of gluconasturtiin. These compounds are also expected to contribute to the functional profile of the pasta developed. The integration of watercress into pasta formulations represents a promising approach to developing functional pasta products with enhanced sensory, nutritional, and health-promoting attributes. |
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| Autores principais: | Gomes, Flavia Ronato |
| Assunto: | Functional foods Watercress Pasta formulation Bioactive compounds Health- promoting effects |
| Ano: | 2024 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | dissertação de mestrado |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso aberto |
| Instituição associada: | Instituto Politécnico de Bragança |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | Biblioteca Digital do IPB |
| Resumo: | Functional foods play an essential role in promoting health by helping to reduce the risk of chronic degenerative and inflammatory diseases, as well as metabolic disorders. The inclusion of watercress (Nasturtium officinale R. BR.) in food products can significantly enhance their nutritional value. This vegetable is notable for its abundance of glucosinolates, carotenoids, polyphenols, and essential minerals, in addition to its traditional medicinal uses. Incorporating watercress into functional foods aligns with the trend of integrating health and nutrition, offering a unique combination of nutritional and functional benefits for the development of innovative food products. The primary objective of this thesis was to evaluate the inclusion of watercress in food products by analyzing its physical (texture, water activity, color, weight loss, and flour viscosity), nutritional (moisture, ash, total fat, crude protein, and energetic value), and chemical (free sugars, organic acids, fatty acids, mineral elements, phenolic and glucosinolate compounds) properties. The development of new pasta enriched with watercress was conducted using either freeze-dried or fresh watercress as an ingredient in substitutions of 1.5%, 3%, and 5% of wheat flour, and the final product was analysed in both raw and cooked forms. A negative control (100% wheat flour) and a sample of fresh commercial pasta were also included in the study. The incorporation of watercress affected the color parameters of the pasta, reduced solids loss during cooking, and altered weight gain and viscosity profiles. Texture changes were observed, influenced by water retention and gluten development. Moreover, there were modifications in the nutritional composition, enriching the pasta with proteins, lipids, and bioactive compounds. The retention of bioactive compounds, particularly C-glycosylated apigenins and fatty acids, was impacted by the processing methods. Thriteen glucosinolates were found in watercress extract with indicative of the large presence of gluconasturtiin. These compounds are also expected to contribute to the functional profile of the pasta developed. The integration of watercress into pasta formulations represents a promising approach to developing functional pasta products with enhanced sensory, nutritional, and health-promoting attributes. |
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