Projects
Influence of product and process factors on the bioaccessibility and bioavailability of carotenoids in plant-based food systems KU Leuven
Fruits and vegetables are part of a healthy diet as they are important in maintaining good health as well as to reduce coronary heart diseases, strokes and certain types of cancer. Carotenoids are lipophilic micronutrients present in all fruits and vegetables. They are located in plastids of the plant cell, where they can be associated with other components. Due to their high level of bio-encapsulation and low solubility in an aqueous phase, ...
Carotenoid bioaccessibility in fruit and vegetable based systems KU Leuven
Carotenoids are important micronutrients that have been linked with several health benefits. To exert the health benefits, carotenoids must be absorbed and reach their site of action. The absorption process of carotenoids consists of various steps including release from the food matrix, solubilization into a lipid phase, incorporation into micelles (i.e. bioaccessibility) and uptake through the intestine epithelia. However, previous ...
Honest signaling in birds: Can carotenoids promote steroidogenesis? University of Antwerp
Use of Microorganisms for Carotenoids Delivery: Next Generation of Probiotics for Cardiovascular Disease Ghent University
CARODEL aims to valorise the result from the previous FP7 COLORSPORE, project, in which initial isolation and characterization work was performed on Bacillus strains producing gastric-stable carotenolds. As the stability in the gastrointestinal Iract (GIT), antioxidant activity and biosavailability of particular Bacillus carotenoids was shown to be higher than those of common dietary carotenoids, the conclusions from COLORSPORE provided ...
A new methodological approach to understand how structural barriers govern carotenoid bioaccessibility in plant based foods. KU Leuven
The effect of structural build-up of plant-based food emulsions on carotenoid bio-accessibility and in vitro digestion of fat. KU Leuven
Vegetable-based foods such as soups and sauces, are good sources of water, fibers (e.g. pectin), micronutrients and lipids. In foods, lipids are often considered as negative since an excess uptake of lipids is linked with a risk of obesity. It should however be noted that lipids are important macronutrients providing energy and essential fatty acids and facilitating the uptake of lipid soluble micronutrients such as carotenoids.
The ...
Functionalisation of pumpkin-derived ingredients as natural colourant and texturizing ingredient KU Leuven
In this doctoral work, the kinetics of carotenoid stability as a function of the food chain will be investigated. The main raw material to be studied is Hokkaido pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima Duchesne ssp.) due to its complex carotenoid profile yet very few studies in the literature. This would be beneficial in optimizing the extraction process of carotenoids from pumpkins as natural colorants in food products. In addition, carotenoids are also ...
Astaxanthine from indigenous strains of Haematococcus pluvialis Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Astaxanthin (a carotenoid) is used in fish and shrimp feed for aquaculture and is to date the most expensive raw material in its purified natural form. Can we produce astaxanthin in a cost efficient way by a suitable strain of Haematococcus pluvialis, a type of micro-algae? This project investigates the potential for cultivating local strains of Haematococcus pluvialis in our ...