Vladimiros P. Lougovois

Comparison of selected methods of assessing freshness quality and remaining storage life of iced gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata)

Quality changes of whole, iced gilthead sea bream were monitored by sensory evaluation, k1 value, GRTorrymeter, and bacterial counts. The methods were tested for their suitability to determine freshness quality and remaining storage life in ice. Depending on the measured parameter, post-mortem age of the iced fish could be predicted with an accuracy of 1.5–3.6 days. Although assessment of cooked fish flavour is the underlying basis for establishing the state of the fish, the quality index method can be more effective for routine freshness evaluations. The k1 value provides a useful means of monitoring early storage change, resulting primarily from autolytic reactions. Counts of sulphide-producing bacteria can be used to determine the time to rejection, while total counts at 20 C are only poor measures of freshness quality. The GRTorrymeter offers a unique practical tool for assessing freshness quality and remaining storage life of iced gilthead sea bream. # 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Food Safety and Label Claims for Hazelnut Allergy Traces: Evaluation of Two PCR Assays

Abstract Houhoula D.P., Lagou K., Varvaresou M., Giannakourou M., Bratakos S.M., Lougovois V., Tsaknis J., Koussissis S. (2015): Food safety and label claims for hazelnut allergy traces: evaluation of two PCR as-says . Czech J. Food Sci., 33: 410–415. The molecular techniques (C-PCR, RT-PCR) in the detection and quantification of allergic substances of hazelnut in various categories of food commodities, e.g. breakfast cereals, chocolates and biscuits, frequently involved in allergic outbreaks was implementated. For the detection of hazelnut a gene coding the major allergenic protein Cor a1 was selected. In some instances, the presence of hazelnuts is not declared on the label and the products may carry no warn -ing for potentially allergenic substances, usually referred to as “traces”. A total of 150 samples were collected from local supermarkets and analysed for the purpose of the study. From these, a total of 38 (25.3%) specimens contained hazelnut, 30 (20.0%) contained “traces” of hazelnut, 26 (17.3%) contained a label warning for the possible presence of “traces” of allergenic substances, and 56 (37.3%) specimens contained no food allergy labels. Among them, using the C-PCR, 36 (94.7%), 10 (33.3%), 5 (19.2%), and 5 (8.9%) specimens were detected as positive, respectively. Using the RT-PCR, 38 (100%), 15 (50%), 7 (26.9%) and 8 (14.3%) specimens were detected as positive, respectively. Finally, by combining both methods, 38 (100%), 17 (56.7%), 9 (34.6%), and 10 (17.9%) specimens were identified as positive, respectively.