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Cardoso Freitas Lopes de Freitas, Ana Cristina
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- Uncovering Akkermansia muciniphila resilience or susceptibility to different temperatures, atmospheres and gastrointestinal conditionsPublication . Machado, Daniela; Almeida, Diana; Seabra, Catarina L.; Andrade, José Carlos; Gomes, Ana Maria; Freitas, Ana CristinaData regarding Akkermansia muciniphila viability under stress remains scarce despite its beneficial potential. Therefore, the main goal was to assess A. muciniphila culturability when exposed to different temperatures, atmospheres and gastrointestinal simulated conditions. Cultivable cell numbers A. muciniphila remain high after refrigerated and room temperatures oxygen exposure, and gastrointestinal passage.
- Influence of L-cysteine, oxygen and relative humidity upon survival throughout storage of probiotic bacteria in whey protein-based microcapsulesPublication . Rodrigues, D.; Sousa, Sérgio; Santos, Nathália Baptista T.; Silva, J.P.; Lobo, J. M. Sousa; Costa, P; Amaral, Gustavo Henrique De Oliveira; Pintado, M.M.E; Gomes, Ana Maria; Malcata, F. Xavier; Freitas, Ana CThe survival rates of Lactobacilus acidophilus Ki, Lactobacillus paracasei L26 and Bifidobacterium animalis BB-12 were studied after whey protein microencapsulation via spray-drying, with or without L-cysteine-HCl, and storage up to 6 months at 5 degrees C and 22 degrees C, with variation in relative air humidity and oxygen levels. Lb. paracasei L26 was the least susceptible to storage conditions: above 10(6) cfu g(-1) were recorded by 180 d at 22 degrees C, irrespective of relative humidity, and the presence/absence of oxygen and L-cysteine. Higher relative humidity, higher temperature and longer storage periods were deleterious to survival of both B. animalis BB-12 and Lb. acidophilus Ki; the effect of L-cysteine-HCl was dependent on the probiotic strain. The effect of overhead oxygen was not significant upon any probiotic strain studied. Whey protein microcapsules containing L-cysteine-HCl protected probiotic cultures from simulated gastrointestinal conditions.
- A simplified strategy to measure glucose release in cooked rice samplesPublication . Rodrigues, Dina; Pimenta, Ana; Vasconcelos, Marta; Freitas, Ana Cristina; Gomes, Ana Maria
- Production of conjugated linoleic acid by food-grade bacteria: A reviewPublication . Andrade, José C.; Ascenção, Kelly; Gullón, Patricia; Henriques, Silvino M. S.; Pinto, Jorge M. S.; Rocha-Santos, Teresa A. P.; Freitas, A. Cristina; Gomes, Ana MariaConjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a group of isomers of linoleic acid (LA) with several potential health benefits which justifies the efforts to obtain foods with enhanced CLA contents. A possible way to obtain CLA-enriched products is via fermentation as several micro-organisms, many of which are employed in the manufacture of foods, are known to convert free LA into CLA. However, due to several constraints, the use of CLA-producing bacteria still remains challenging and continuous efforts are required. This review summarises the current knowledge on microbial CLA production by food-grade micro-organisms, its technical issues and limitations, potential applications and bioactivities.
- Analytical approaches for proteomics and lipidomics of arsenic in algaePublication . Freitas, Ana Cristina; Gomes, Ana MariaArsenic (As) is an element with a complex chemistry found in relatively high concentrations in the marine environment. A diverse group of As compounds or As species exist in the marine environment and these are of importance to human health given their potential cytotoxicity. It has been pointed out that marine algae are the origin of such As compounds, since they accumulate arsenate from seawater and metabolize it into several organoarsenic species of both lipophilic and hydrophilic nature. In this chapter, it is intended to discuss lipidomics approaches for identification of the > 70 existing lipophilic arsenic species (arsenolipids) in algae which include arsenic incorporated into phospholipids, hydrocarbons, long-chain alcohols, and polyunsaturated fatty acids. In turn, proteomic analysis will also be presented and discussed in its role, for example, to investigate whether cells show a specific response or survival strategy when under arsenic-induced stress. Research on proteome involvement in stress and tolerance to arsenic offers new tools to understand the associated physiological and biochemical mechanisms connected with different algae responses. Protein biomarkers are also of interest to enable indication of quantitative changes in some physiological parameters as the result of stress or toxicity.
- Development of a rice-based fermented probiotic beverage with lactobacillus spp. and streptococcus thermophilusPublication . Gomes, Ana Maria; Ramalhosa, Francisco; Sousa, Sérgio; Rodrigues, Dina; Freitas, Ana Cristina
- Health benefits and bioavailability of marine resources components that contribute to health – what’s new?Publication . Nova, Paulo; Pimenta-Martins, Ana; Silva, Joana Laranjeira; Silva, Ana Machado; Gomes, Ana Maria; Freitas, Ana CristinaThe strict connection between nutritional intake and health leads to a necessity of understanding the beneficial and protective role of healthy nutrients and foods. The marine environment is a source of a plethora of many organisms with unique properties, extremely rich in bioactive compounds and with remarkable potential for medical, industrial and biotechnological applications. Marine organisms are an extreme valuable source of functional ingredients such as polysaccharides, vitamins, minerals, pigments, enzymes, proteins and peptides, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), phenolic compounds and other secondary metabolites that prevent or have the potential to treat several diseases given their cardiovascular protective, anti-inflammatory, anti-hypertensive, anti-oxidant, anti-coagulant, anti-proliferative and anti-diabetic activities. This review provides an overview on the current advances regarding health benefits of marine bioactive compounds on several diseases and on human gut microbiota. In addition, it is discussed a crucial factor that is related to the effectiveness of these compounds on human organism namely its real bioavailability.
- Akkermansia muciniphila robustness towards different temperatures, atmospheres and gastrointestinal conditionsPublication . Freitas, Ana Cristina; Machado, Daniela; Almeida, Diana; Seabra, Catarina; Andrade, José Carlos; Gomes, Ana Maria
- Commensal obligate anaerobic bacteria and health: production, storage, and delivery strategiesPublication . Andrade, José Carlos; Almeida, Diana; Domingos, Melany; Seabra, Catarina Leal; Machado, Daniela; Freitas, Ana Cristina; Gomes, Ana MariaIn the last years several human commensals have emerged from the gut microbiota studies as potential probiotics or therapeutic agents. Strains of human gut inhabitants such as Akkermansia, Bacteroides, or Faecalibacterium have shown several interesting bioactivities and are thus currently being considered as food supplements or as live biotherapeutics, as is already the case with other human commensals such as bifidobacteria. The large-scale use of these bacteria will pose many challenges and drawbacks mainly because they are quite sensitive to oxygen and/or very difficult to cultivate. This review highlights the properties of some of the most promising human commensals bacteria and summarizes the most up-to-date knowledge on their potential health effects. A comprehensive outlook on the potential strategies currently employed and/or available to produce, stabilize, and deliver these microorganisms is also presented.
- Foods with microalgae and seaweeds fostering consumers health: a review on scientific and market innovationsPublication . Nova, Paulo; Martins, Ana Pimenta; Teixeira, Carla; Abreu, Helena; Silva, Joana Gabriela; Silva, Ana Machado; Freitas, Ana Cristina; Gomes, Ana MariaNutrition plays a crucial role in health promotion and disease prevention, and dietary-related factors are, in many cases, the leading risks for worldwide mortality and morbidity. Nowadays, consumer awareness of this fact has led to an increasing interest in food products that couple both these dimensions to an imperative third overall factor of interest—sustainability. Microalgae and seaweeds have in their composition a wide range of important multifunctional bioactive compounds which may possess cardiovascular protective, anti-inflammatory, anti-hypertensive, antioxidant, anti-coagulant, anti-proliferative, and/or antidiabetic activities. In addition, they can constitute excellent ingredients for the food industry to be used in the development of value-added food products. This review provides an overview on the current scientific and industrial developments regarding food products incorporating microalgae and seaweeds. Furthermore, technological, nutritional, sustainability, and health benefits resulting from their incorporation in different food matrixes are also explored