Chidambaram Ramalingam

Nanoscience and nanotechnologies in food industries: opportunities and research trends

Nanomaterials have gained importance in various fields of science, technology, medicine, colloid technologies, diagnostics, drug delivery, personal care applications and others due to their small size and unique physico-chemical characteristic. Apart from above mentioned area, it is also extensively being used in food sector specifically in preservation and packaging. The future applications in food can also be extended to improve the shelf life, food quality, safety, fortification and biosensors for contaminated or spoiled food or food packaging. Different types and shapes of nanomaterials are being employed depending upon the need and nature of the food. Characterisation of these nanomaterials is essential to understand the interaction with the food matrix and also with biological compartment. This review is focused on application of nanotechnology in food industries. It also gives insight on commercial products in market with usage of nanomaterials, current research and future aspects in these areas. Currently, they are being incorporated into commercial products at a faster rate than the development of knowledge and regulations to mitigate potential health and environmental impacts associated with their manufacturing, application and disposal. As nanomaterials are finding new application every day, care should be taken about their potential toxic effects.

Fabrication of Food Grade Vitamin E Nanoemulsion by Low Energy Approach, Characterization and Its Application

The present study was carried out to fabricate the food grade vitamin E acetate nanoemulsion using edible mustard oil and to evaluate its improved bioactivities. A food-grade vitamin E acetate nanoemulsion was fabricated using the edible mustard oil and surfactant Tween-80. Flocculation was not observed for 15 days. The nanoemulsion was characterized for droplet morphology and size distribution using atomic force microscope and zetasizer, respectively. We observe a stable nanoemulsion of spherical morphology and a size distribution of 86.45 ± 3.61 nm. Further, the high-performance liquid chromatography method was used to determine the vitamin E acetate concentration and encapsulation efficiency for the stable nanoemulsion. These nanoemulsions showed improved bioactivity, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activity and could be potentially used to increase the shelf life of fruit juice.

Nanomaterials in food and agriculture: An overview on their safety concerns and regulatory issues

ABSTRACT Nanotechnology has seen exponential growth in last decade due to its unique physicochemical properties; however, the risk associated with this emerging technology has withdrawn ample attention in the past decade. Nanotoxicity is majorly contributed to the small size and large surface area of nanomaterials, which allow easy dispersion and invasion of anatomical barriers in human body. Unique physio-chemical properties of nanoparticles make the investigation of their toxic consequences intricate and challenging. This makes it important to have an in-depth knowledge of different mechanisms involved in nanomaterialss action and toxicity. Nano-toxicity has various effects on human health and diseases as they can easily enter into the humans via different routes, mainly respiratory, dermal, and gastrointestinal routes. This also limits the use of nanomaterials as therapeutic and diagnostic tools. This review focuses on the nanomaterial–cell interactions leading to toxicological responses. Different mechanisms involved in nanoparticle-mediated toxicity with the main focus on oxidative stress, genotoxic, and carcinogenic potential has also been discussed. Different methods and techniques used for the characterization of nanomaterials in food and other biological matrices have also been discussed in detail. Nano-toxicity on different organs—with the major focus on the cardiac and respiratory system—have been discussed. Conclusively, the risk management of nanotoxicity is also summarized. This review provides a better understanding of the current scenario of the nanotoxicology, disease progression due to nanomaterials, and their use in the food industry and medical therapeutics. Briefly, the required rules, regulations, and the need of policy makers has been discussed critically.

Synthesis and characterization of palladium nanoparticles using Catharanthus roseus leaf extract and its application in the photo-catalytic degradation

The potential effect of Catharanthus roseus leaf extract for the formation of palladium nanoparticles and its application on dye degradation was discussed. The efficiency of C.roseus leaves are used as a bio-material for the first time as reducing agent. Synthesized palladium nanoparticles were supported by UV-vis spectrometry, XRD, FT-IR and TEM analysis. The secondary metabolites which are responsible for the formation of nanoparticles were identified by GC-MS. The results showed that effect of time was directly related to synthesized nanoparticles and functional groups has a critical role in reducing the metal ions and stabilizing the palladium nanoparticles in an eco-friendly process.

Applications of nanotechnology in agriculture and water quality management

Due to their small size and unique physico-chemical characteristics, nanomaterials have gained importance in the agri-food sector, notably in preservation and packaging. Future applications will focus on shelf life, food quality, safety, fortification and biosensors for contaminated or spoiled food, irrigating water and drinking water. Different types and shapes of nanomaterials are being used depending upon the needs and nature of the work in agriculture and water quality management. Here we review the application of nanotechnology in agriculture. The major points discussed are: (1) Nanomaterials for agriculture and water quality management. (2) Research interests such as nanoscale carriers, fabricated xylem vessels, nanolignocellulosic materials, clay nanotubes, photocatalysis, bioremediation of resistant pesticides, disinfectants, agricultural wastewater treatment, nanobarcode technology, quantum dots for staining bacteria and nanobiosensors. (3) Nanotechnological applications for agriculture, which includes nanolignodynamic metallic particles, photocatalysis, desalination, removal of heavy metals and wireless nanosensors.

Fish oil based vitamin D nanoencapsulation by ultrasonication and bioaccessibility analysis in simulated gastro-intestinal tract

Recently, nanoemulsions have been employed for different applications including food and drug industries for efficient nutrient delivery system. In this study, vitamin D (a lipophilic molecule) was encapsulated in fish oil for higher oral bioavailability. The oil-in-water nanoemulsion was formulated by ultrasonication technique with a droplet size range of 300-450nm and a shelf life of more than 90days. The influence of oil, water and surfactant concentration was investigated by phase diagram. The formulated nanoemulsion had encapsulation efficiency in the range of 95.7-98.2%. Further, nanoemulsion passed through simulated gastro-intestinal tract revealed an increased bioavailability than non-encapsulated vitamin. Thus, the formulation can be used as a drug delivery vehicle for various lipophilic compounds. Till date, no one have fabricated an efficient nano-vehicle for the delivery of vitamin D as well as analyzed the efficient delivery system in simulated GI-tract, this is first of its kind study in this regard. This can be scaled up further after analyzing the safety aspects.

A spectroscopic study on interaction between bovine serum albumin and titanium dioxide nanoparticle synthesized from microwave-assisted hybrid chemical approach

The use of nanoparticles in food or pharma requires a molecular-level perceptive of how NPs interact with protein corona once exposed to a physiological environment. In this study, the conformational changes of bovine serum albumin (BSA) were investigated in detail when exposed to different concentration of titanium dioxide nanoparticle by various techniques. To analyze the effects of NPs on proteins, the interaction between bovine serum albumin and titanium dioxide nanoparticles at different concentrations were investigated. The interaction, BSA conformations, kinetics, and adsorption were analyzed by dynamic light scattering, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and fluorescence quenching. Dynamic light scattering analysis confirms the interaction with major changes in the size of the protein. Fluorescence quenching analysis confirms the side-on or end-on interaction of 1.1 molecules of serum albumin to titanium dioxide nanoparticles. Further, pseudo-second order kinetics was determined with equilibrium contact time of 20min. The spectroscopic analysis suggests that there is a conformational change both at secondary and tertiary structure levels. A distortion in both α-helix and β-sheets was observed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Fluorescence quenching analysis confirms the interaction of a molecule of bovine serum albumin to the single TiO2 nanoparticle. Further, pseudo-second order kinetics was determined with equilibrium contact time of 20min. The data of the present study determines the detailed evaluation of BSA adsorption on TiO2 nanoparticle along with mechanism and adsorption kinetics.

Assessment on the antibacterial activity of nanosized silica derived from hypercoordinated silicon(IV) precursors

Silica nanoparticles were synthesized through a versatile sol–gel combustion method from hydrazide based hypercoordinated silicon complexes derived from the reaction of silicon tetrachloride with O-silylated hydrazide derivatives. The complexes were characterized by 1H, 13C, 29Si NMR and ESI-mass spectrometric techniques. A refined morphology was observed in the product after sintering i.e. from spherical to rod shaped nanoparticles. The powder X-ray diffraction patterns and the TEM images of silica show the formation of silica nanoparticles. The IR spectra show Si–O linkages and DLS studies indicate the particle size distribution to be between 20 and 100 nm for the material before sintering and 70–120 nm after sintering at 1000 °C. A TEM image of the decomposed gel indicates the formation of crystalline silica rods. This work also demonstrates the influence of nano-sized silica particles on antibacterial activity (DIZ, MIC and MBC) i.e. better activity was shown for nano-rods derived from the hypercoordinated silicon complexes than the conventional TEOS (sol–gel) method. Experiments on the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) through oxidative stress demonstrate the toxicity of nanosilica particles.

Biosorption of Cr(VI) by Ceratocystis paradoxa MSR2 using isotherm modelling, kinetic study and optimization of batch parameters using response surface methodology.

This study is focused on the possible use of Ceratocystis paradoxa MSR2 native biomass for Cr(VI) biosorption. The influence of experimental parameters such as initial pH, temperature, biomass dosage, initial Cr(VI) concentration and contact time were optimized using batch systems as well as response surface methodology (RSM). Maximum Cr(VI) removal of 68.72% was achieved, at an optimal condition of biomass dosage 2g L−1, initial Cr(VI) concentration of 62.5 mg L−1 and contact time of 60 min. The closeness of the experimental and the predicted values exhibit the success of RSM. The biosorption mechanism of MSR2 biosorbent was well described by Langmuir isotherm and a pseudo second order kinetic model, with a high regression coefficient. The thermodynamic study also revealed the spontaneity and exothermic nature of the process. The surface characterization using FT-IR analysis revealed the involvement of amine, carbonyl and carboxyl groups in the biosorption process. Additionally, desorption efficiency of 92% was found with 0.1 M HNO3. The Cr(VI) removal efficiency, increased with increase in metal ion concentration, biomass concentration, temperature but with a decrease in pH. The size of the MSR2 biosorbent material was found to be 80 μm using particle size analyzer. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) visualizes the distribution of Cr(VI) on the biosorbent binding sites with alterations in the MSR2 surface structure. The SEM-EDAX analysis was also used to evaluate the binding characteristics of MSR2 strain with Cr(VI) metals. The mechanism of Cr(VI) removal of MSR2 biomass has also been proposed.

Nanoagriculture and Water Quality Management

Nanomaterials have rapidly gained importance in many fields of science and technology due to their unique properties. Nanomaterials are used in the agri-food sector notably for preservation and packaging, for agriculture and for water quality management. Future applications will improve shelf life, food quality, safety, and fortification. Nanosensors will be used to analyse contaminated food and water. Here we review the application of nanotechnology in agriculture and subdisciplines. The major points are the following. We explain the classification and synthesis of nanomaterials used for agriculture and water management. Then we present major applications such as nanoscale carriers, fabricated xylem vessels, nanolignocellulosic materials, clay nanotubes, photocatalysis, bioremediation of resistant pesticides, disinfectants, agricultural wastewater treatment, nanobarcode technology, quantum dots for staining bacteria, and nano-biosensors. Applications to water quality management include nanolignodynamic metallic particles, photocatalysis, desalination, removal of heavy metals, and wireless nanosensors.