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Gonçalves Oliveira Valente da Cruz-Lopes, Luísa Paula
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- Edible Insects: Perceptions of Marketing, Economic, and Social Aspects among Citizens of Different CountriesPublication . Guiné, Raquel; Florença, Sofia De Guiné E; Costa, Cristina Amaro Da; Correia, Paula; Cruz-Lopes, Luísa; Esteves, Bruno; Ferreira, Manuela; Fragata, Anabela; Cardoso, Ana Paula; Campos, Sofia; Anjos, Ofélia; Bartkiene, Elena; Djekic, Ilija; Matran, Irina M.; Čulin, Jelena; Klava, Dace; Chuck-Hernández, Cristina; Korzeniowska, Malgorzata; Boustani, Nada M.; Papageorgiou, Maria; Gutiérrez, Bernardo Prieto; Černelič-Bizjak, Maša; Damarli, Emel; Ferreira, VanessaBecause edible insects (EI) have been, in recent years, recommended as a nutritious animal protein food with enormous environmental advantages over other sources of animal protein for human consumption, studies aimed at investigating the consumer perspective have become more prominent. Hence, this study intended to examine the perceptions of participants from different countries about the commercialization and economic and social impacts of edible insects. The study was made using a questionnaire survey, and data were collected in Brazil, Croatia, Greece, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, and Turkey. The final number of received answers was 7222 participants. For the treatment of the results, different statistical techniques were used: factor analysis, internal reliability by Cronbach’s alpha, cluster analysis, ANOVA to test differences between groups, and Chi-square tests. The results obtained confirmed the validity of the scale, constituted by 12 out of the 14 items initially considered, distributed by 4 factors: the first related to the economic impact of EIs, the second related to the motivation for consumption of EIs, the third related to the places of purchase of EIs, and the fourth corresponding to a question presented to the participants as a false statement. A cluster analysis allowed identifying three clusters, with significant differences between them according to all the sociodemographic variables tested. Also, it was found that the participants expressed an exceptionally high level of agreement with aspects such as the difficulty in finding EIs on sale, knowledge acting as a strong motivator for EI consumption, and the role of personalities and influencers in increasing the will to consume EIs. Finally, practically all sociodemographic variables were found to be significantly associated with perceptions (country, sex, education, living environment, and income), but not age. In conclusion, the perceptions about EI commercialization were investigated and revealed differences among samples originating from different countries. Moreover, the sociodemographic characteristics of the participants were found to be strongly associated with their perceptions.
- The impact of extraction temperature and solution concentration on the antioxidant activity of sweet cherry seeds’ extractsPublication . Dulyanska, Y.; Cunha, Margarida; Lima, M. J.; Correia, Paula; Ferreira, Manuela; Fragata, Anabela; Cardoso, Ana Paula; Barroca, Maria João; Silva, A.; Cruz-Lopes, Luísa; Esteves, Bruno; Ferreira, José; Domingos, Idalina; Guiné, Raquel P. F.Sweet cherry seeds, a valuable lignin-cellulose raw material for the production of polyurethane foams 1, are also a significant source of different phenolic compounds 2 and can be a good source of natural antioxidants, which can play an important role in preventing the formation of free radicals and protection against degenerative diseases. Considering sustainability, the main objective of this project was the use of cherry by-products (seeds) to produce extracts rich in antioxidant compounds. In this work, the seed extracts were obtained with the addition of different combinations of ethanolic solution (water:ethanol ratios - 50:50; 60:40; 80:20; 100:0 v:v) and at different temperatures (35, 50, 70 and 80 °C), all under magnetic stirring for 40 minutes. Then, the antioxidant activity of the extracts was evaluated through spectrophotometric methods, using the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and ABTS (2,2′-azino-di-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline sulfonic acid)) radicals, and also the Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power Assay (FRAP). All measurements were replicated at least in triplicates and were expressed as mg Trolox equivalents per gram (mg TE/g). Statistical analysis was performed using the JAVA software. ANOVA tests show that there is a statistically significant effect of temperature, water percentage and temperature on the antioxidant activity evaluated by the three methods used (p> 0.001 in all tests). The percentage of water is the variable that most contributes to this effect. Individual Post Hoc comparisons show, for all tests, that in general the temperatures induce differences in antioxidant activity, except 70 °C and 80 °C in DPPH and FRAP, and 80 °C and 50 °C in ABTS. Regarding the percentage of water, it was found that all samples are different from each other, except the FRAP, in which no significant differences between 50 and 60% of water were found. In conclusion, no major differences between the ABTS, DPPH and FRAP methods were found. Temperature and percentage of water have a significant effect on the concentration of antioxidant activity in all methods. In that way, the cherry pit is a good by-product to produce extracts with high content of antioxidant activity, being that the 70° C with 50:50 and 60:40 water:ethanol solutions are the most favorable conditions to potentiate the antioxidant activity.
- Edible Insects: Consumption, Perceptions, Culture and Tradition Among Adult Citizens from 14 CountriesPublication . Guiné, Raquel; Florença, Sofia De Guiné E; Costa, Cristina Amaro Da; Correia, Paula; Cruz-Lopes, Luísa; Esteves, Bruno; Ferreira, Manuela; Fragata, Anabela; Cardoso, Ana Paula; Campos, Sofia; Anjos, Ofélia; Boustani, Nada M.; Bartkiene, Elena; Chuck-Hernández, Cristina; Djekic, Ilija; Tarcea, Monica; Sarić, Marijana Matek; Kruma, Zanda; Korzeniowska, Malgorzata; Papageorgiou, Maria; Árias, Leticia González; Černelič-Bizjak, Maša; Damarli, Emel; Ferreira, Vanessa; Bayraktaroğlu, Emre; Arpa, Fatmanur OzyurekAlthough edible insects (EIs) are encouraged as a sustainable source of protein, their consumption is not as generalised as other types of food that are internationally accepted. While in some regions of the world, EIs are part of the gastronomic and cultural traditions, in other regions, people are not so receptive to this type of food, and some people even express some disgust towards it. Hence, this research focused on the habits of the participants regarding the consumption of insects as well as their perceptions about EIs being or not a part of the local culture or gastronomic patrimony. A questionnaire survey was implemented in fourteen countries (Brazil, Croatia, Greece, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, and Turkey), and globally, 7222 adult participants responded to the questionnaire. SPSS software (version 28) was used to process the data and carry out chi-square tests and Factor Analyses (FA). The obtained results showed significant differences between countries for all the questions included in the survey, either those regarding the habits of the participants or their opinions about the facts linked with EI tradition or cultural aspects. It was found that participants from Mexico consume EIs more than in all other countries and that strong motivations that would lead to consumption among those who do not consume include curiosity and food shortage. The solution obtained with FA considering the ten statements of the scale consisted of two factors: F1—Culture and Tradition of EIs (α = 0.675) and F2—Acceptance of EIs (α = 0.614). In conclusion, the consumption of EIs and the perceptions of people are highly variable according to geographic location and cultural environment.
- Evaluating phenolic compounds in ethanolic extracts of cherry pitPublication . Dulyanska, Y.; Lima, M. J. Reis; Correia, Paula; Ferreira, Manuela; Fragata, Anabela; Cardoso, Ana Paula; Barroca, Maria João; Silva, A.; Cruz-Lopes, Luísa; Esteves, Bruno; Ferreira, José; Domingos, Idalina; Guiné, Raquel P. F.The climatic conditions in Portugal favoured the adaptation of the cherry tree allowing its cultivation in several regions of the country. Studies made by the Portuguese Bureau of Statistics – INE 1, showed that the Portuguese sweet cherry production has an implemented area of 6,387 ha, producing 9,241 tons of this fruit. Its production extends mainly to two regions: the North (area of 3,099 ha and production of 6,586 tons) and the Centre (3,177 ha and 2,510 tons), while the rest of the country and islands accounts for only 1.6% of the cherry production. There are several varieties of cherry in Portugal, and the most important traditionally cultivated are: “Saco da Cova da Beira”, “Saco do Douro”, “Lisboeta”, “São Julião”, Big Burlat, Maring, Napoleon-big-foot and Big Windsor, being the first four varieties native from Portugal. Cova da Beira is the most important cherry production area in Portugal, either in terms of production volume, or also in area. Additionally, the evolution of technological indicators associated with culture reveals a high degree of specialization of the “new” farms, almost always associated with other fruit crops, which coexist in a very significant number of smaller farms, of a family type, that constitute the historical legacy of cherry production on the hillside north of the Serra da Gardunha. Sweet cherry seeds result from processing sweet cherry for sweets, juices and jams’ production. Generally, seeds are considered a production waste, which gains a strong interest due to the environmental aspects related to waste disposal 2. Additionally, it is well documented that production waste, such as peels, seeds, and pomace, contain high-value bioactive compounds 3. Hence, the present work investigated the extraction of some bioactive compounds from cherry pits that originate from food manufacturing industries. The waste management company Nutrofertil, located in Portugal, namely in the district of Viseu (Tondela), provided the Seeds of Sweet Cherry (SSC) for this study. The seeds were milled and dried for stability and then used for extraction with ethanolic solutions at different percentages (from 50 to 100% water v/v). Variable temperatures were also tested and the extracts were used for quantification of phenolic compounds through spectrophotometric techniques. The material was analysed to verify that it was exempt of hydrocyanic acid. Statistical techniques were used to treat the data: (a) Hierarchical cluster analysis using squared Euclidean distance and average linkage between groups method; (b) Principal component factor analysis with Varimax rotation. The results indicated that extraction at 40 ºC with magnetic stirring and using aqueous solutions of ethanol (water:ethanol ratio = 80:20, % v/v) constitute a separate cluster. Also, extracts obtained with similar conditions but for the temperature of 35 ºC constitute another isolated cluster. Factor analysis revealed a grouping structure with four clearly distinct clusters (Figure 1). Group G1 accounts for the samples with water:ethanol 80:20 (% v/v) and a temperature of 35 ºC, corresponding to the extraction of higher amounts of anthocyanins. Group G3 includes the extractions with 100% water at 70 ºC (G3), with lowest contents of anthocyanins and flavonols. The remaining groups are divergent according to the values of total phenolic compounds. In group G4 are included samples in which were quantified high values for total phenolic compounds, flavonoids, proanthocyanidins, ortho-diphenols and phenolic acids, while G2 corresponds to samples with smaller amounts of those compounds. In conclusion, investigating the extraction potential of different conditions it was allowed to optimize the experimental conditions more favourable to maximize the recovery of certain bioactive compounds, which can have multiple applications as antioxidant substances after rigorous quality control regarding possible concentrations of hydrocyanic acid.