2020 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Innovative meal: characterization of sausages stuffed in a new novel casing formulation with flavonoids extracted from waste orange peel based on terahertz spectroscopy and imaging
| Project/Area Number |
20K15477
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| Research Institution | Institute of Physical and Chemical Research |
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Principal Investigator |
Feng ChaoHui 国立研究開発法人理化学研究所, 光量子工学研究センター, 基礎科学特別研究員 (30847611)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2020-04-01 – 2023-03-31
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| Keywords | Terahertz spectroscopy / Waste orange peel / Modified casing / Hesperidin / Naringin / Neohesperidin |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
As an emerging and cutting-edge technology, terahertz spectroscopy (THz) has been intensively employed to detect biology threats and defects, residue detection, transgenic food, foreign body detection, adulteration and so on. However, the application of terahertz spectroscopy in foodstuffs is still at infant stage in comparison with the sophisticated and prevalent spectroscopic and imaging techniques.
Since last year, we have commenced to confirm the feasibility of evaluating properties of different casings modified by surfactants and lactic acid using terahertz spectroscopy. The spectra changes of sausage beef, sheep, and hog casings before and after modification (via surfactant solution and slush salt with lactic acid) were monitored by Terahertz time - domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) with transmission mode. In addition, THz-TDS with attenuated total reflectance (ATR) mode was employed during drying procedures. After more than hundreds of experiments to obtain the trustable data and more than 7 times revised the manuscript, this work study has been accepted to be published in SCI Journal: Food Control (Q1 journal; IF: 4.258)
Apart from this, another 4 SCI papers have been accepted for publication in peer-reviewed international journals with the high IF in 2020. I am also invited for peer-reviewed several mainstream and high impact journals. I am invited as an EDITOR for Nova publication "The Book of Flavonoids". and the Guest Associate Editor for Journal Frontiers in Plant Science (IF: 4.402). I am selected again to introduce my research topic“RIKEN at a Glance” in 2020.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
2: Research has progressed on the whole more than it was originally planned.
Reason
The most challenge work (scarce reference is available)-broaden the THz spectroscopy to high-water-content (up to 97.98% wt.)- has been first time confirmed its feasibility. I will combine my previous research experience with current THz technology, to compare the technique carried out by THz and hyperspectral imaging. Since carrying out the research project, 4 SCI papers have been published and 2 oral presentation has been invited (please refer to List of Publication for more details). Also, I make efforts to cooperate with professor in another research fields and trying to broaden my research field (another 1 SCI paper as a coauthor has been published) and have a potential cooperation to apply for larger international grants.
The publication of the review paper entitled "Terahertz spectroscopy technology as an innovative technique for food: current state-of-the-art research advances (Accepted in Critical Reviews in Food Science and Technology Nutrition, IF: 7.862, first and corresponding author)" attracts more than 79 views in less than 2 weeks (314 reviews up to now) and professors from top-ranked universities like KU LEUVEN, University of Seville asked for international cooperation in the near future.
I have participated the online workshop named“Discovery Afternoon” and have a talk on “recent advances in non-invasively evaluating the quality of foodstuffs by using hyperspectral imaging and terahertz spectroscopy”. This event allows me to broaden my research field to get to know other researchers’ study and to have an opportunity to find potential co-operators.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
At this moment, the project is going smoothly, although there are a lot of challenges I need to overcome. During the experiments, I found it is necessary to adjust the previous plan in order to ensure the project to conduct smoothly:
1) it is necessary to confirm the fingerprint of flavonoids (such as hesperidin and naringin) in the terahertz range. At this moment, there is no available data base for those reagents. There is a need to confirm the THz spectra of those reagents first as the standard curves and so it can be used for evaluating the extracts from waste orange peels and the extracts applied to sausages with modified casing.
Change point 2) it is necessary to establish the distribution map of standard hesperidin or naringin that mixed with polyethylene via terahertz imaging. This will provide the useful information for the previous planned WP4 where the distribution map of microorganism will be mapped via terahertz imaging.
Apart from continuously being as a peer-reviewer for several high impact factor journals, I am also invited to join in the Reviewer Board in Foods, the Guest Associate Editor for Journal Frontiers in Plant Science (impact factor: 4.402), and the Editor for the upcoming Nova publication “The Book of Flavonoids”. All those allows me to learn the frontier research work in my field and display my work to the world.
Since my work place has been changed and I will do my best to ensure the project to complete successfully, the business travel fee may increase to have the experimental cooperation.
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| Causes of Carryover |
Due to the serious situation caused by Coronavirus, we have to stay home for working for approximately 3 months. All the experiments have been ceased and it also takes time to restart the experiments, which results in the left grant from the previous fiscal year.
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| Remarks |
I was awarded by President of RIKEN for a Letter of Appreciation for special recognition for the outstanding research achievements. My history has been published in Young Researcher News at RIKEN
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