فهرست مطالب محمد نوشاد

Adding chemical preservatives increases the shelf life of food products, but long-term and indiscriminate use of chemical preservatives increases the resistance of microorganisms and health risks associated with their absorption. Medicinal plants have a great diversity both in the world and in Iran and have the potential to be used as alternatives to chemical compounds. In this study, the antimicrobial effect of Pterocarya fraxinifolia essential oil against Bacillus subtilis, Streptococcus pyogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella dysenteriae, Enterobacter aerogenes, and Salmonella typhi was investigated by disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration. The total phenol and flavonoid content of the essential oil was determined using Folin Ciocalteu and aluminium chloride methods, respectively. The antioxidant activity of the essential oil was evaluated using two methods of inhibiting free radicals DPPH and ABTS. The total phenol and flavonoid content of the essential oil was 38.63 mg of gallic acid/g and the flavonoid content was 19.20 mg of quercetin/g. The essential oil of P. fraxinifolia was able to inhibit free radicals DPPH (58.60%) and ABTS (59.80%). The results of the antimicrobial activity of the essential oil by the disk diffusion agar and well diffusion agar methods showed that B. subtilis and E. aerogenes are the most sensitive and resistant microbial strains to the essential oil, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration for these bacteria was 2 and 64 mg/mL, respectively, and the minimum bactericidal concentration was 32 and > 512 mg/mL, respectively.

The aim of this study was to determine the total phenol and flavonoid content and investigate the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of Perovskia abrotanoides essential oil. The total phenol content was determined using the Folin Ciocalteu method, the total flavonoid content using the colorimetric aluminum chloride method, the antioxidant potential using the DPPH and ABTS free radical inhibition methods, and the antimicrobial activity using the disc diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration methods. The total phenol, total flavonoid, DPPH free radical inhibition, and ABTS free radical inhibition of the essential oil were found to be 24.26 mg of gallic acid per gram, 13.15 mg of quercetin per gram, 52.49%, and 56.79%, respectively. The antimicrobial results showed that the antimicrobial effect of the essential oil was higher against Gram-positive bacteria than Gram-negative types, and Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella typhi were the most sensitive and resistant microbial strains against P. abrotanoides essential oil, respectively. The diameter of the growth inhibition zone in the disc diffusion agar and well diffusion agar tests, as well as the minimum inhibitory and bactericidal concentrations for S. aureus, were 16.50 mm, 17.30 mm, 2 mg/mL, and 128 mg/mL, respectively, and these values for S. typhi were 7.60 mm, 9.20 mm, 16 mg/mL, and 512 mg/mL, respectively. In general, P. abrotanoides essential oil can be used as a natural antioxidant and antimicrobial compound.

This study aimed to investigate the chemical composition, antioxidant properties, and antimicrobial activity of Tanacetum balsamita L. essential oil. The essential oil was extracted using the water distillation method, and then the total phenolic content (using the Folin-Ciocalteu method), total flavonoid content (using the aluminium chloride colorimetric method), antioxidant activity (using DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging methods), and antimicrobial activity (using disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration methods) were evaluated. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents of the essential oil were found to be 29.50 mg gallic acid equivalent per gram and 14.90 mg quercetin equivalent per gram, respectively. The essential oil exhibited significant antioxidant activity, with the ability to scavenge 50.40% and 53.55% of free radicals DPPH and ABTS, respectively. According to the results of disc diffusion agar method, Bacillus subtilis and Salmonella typhi were the most sensitive and resistant bacterial strains, respectively, with zone of inhibition diameters of 16 mm and 10.50 mm. The zone of inhibition diameters for these bacteria in the well diffusion agar method were obtained as 16.30 mm and 10.80 mm, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration for B. subtilis were determined as 4 mg/mL and 32 mg/mL, respectively, and for S. typhi, they were 64 mg/mL and greater than 512 mg/mL, respectively. According to the results, T. balsamita essential oil can be used as a natural antioxidant and antimicrobial agent in food products.

The use of safe ingredients to preserve food is steadily increasing. The high time and cost of production and approval of synthetic food additives and the reduction of public acceptance of these compounds have caused serious problems in their utilization. Excessive use of synthetic preservatives, which some of them are suspected to be toxic, has completely eliminated these additives and led to the use of natural alternatives to preserve or extend the shelf life of food products. Many plant-based bioactive compounds are good alternatives to synthetic antimicrobial and antioxidant supplements. Plant extracts have significant biological activity including antioxidant, antibacterial, and antifungal properties, which has increased their use in food products. In addition, plant-derived antimicrobial compounds have been considered in the pharmaceutical industry to control microbial pathogens. Natural antioxidant and antimicrobial compounds are receiving a lot of research and industrial attention in food preservation technologies. In the last 2 decades, the use of herbal medicines rich in bioactive molecules (including polyphenols, carotenoids and flavonoids) with medicinal and health effects such as delaying the onset of some diseases such as cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, and cancer have increased.The plant Prosopis farcta grown in arid and semi-arid regions. In Iran, it is found in the southern regions of the country. In traditional medicine, this plant is used to prevent hyperlipidemia and hyperglycemia, to treat hemorrhoids, intestinal diseases and diarrhea, and leprosy, and to reduce abortion. In addition, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of various species of Prosopis have been reported. Accordingly, in this study, after examining the of total phenols and flavonoids concentrations, the antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of ethanolic extract of Prosopis farcta were determined. 

The ethanolic extract of P. farcta was obtained maceration method. Total phenol content (by Folin-Ciocalteu reagent method), total flavonoid content (by aluminum chloride method), antioxidant activity (by DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging and beta-carotene bleaching methods), and antimicrobial effect against Escherichia coli, Shigella dysentery, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus subtilis (by disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum fungicidal concentration) of the extract were evaluated. 

farcta ethanolic extract showed high phenol content (145.58 ± 1.30 mg GAE/g), while its total flavonoid content was 72.37 ± 1.48 mg QE/g. Antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract of melon root using different methods of DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging and beta-carotene bleaching inhibition were 62.60, 71.82 and 54.50%, respectively. Antibacterial activity of P. farcta ethanolic extract against Escherichia coli, Shigella dysentery, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus subtilis according to disk diffusion agar and well diffusion agar methods showed that the antimicrobial activity of the extract was concentration dependent and Shigella dysentery and Staphylococcus aureus were the most resistant and sensitive bacterial strains to the extract respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of ethanolic extract of P. farcta root for Escherichia coli, Shigella dysentery, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus subtilis were 8, 8, 4 and 4 mg/ml, respectively; while the minimum bactericidal concentrations for these bacteria were 128, 256, 32 and 64 mg/ml, respectively. 

In the present study, ethanolic extract obtained from the roots of P. farcta was identified as a rich source of phenolic and flavonoid compounds. The ethanolic extract showed effective antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. The results greatly indicated the promising effect of P. farcta root extract against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial species. As the microbial resistance is constantly increasing, ethanolic extract of P. farcta root can be considered as a suitable complementary option to tackle this problem. In addition, the identification of individual components of P. farcta ethanolic extract and their biological functions or their combination with common antioxidant and antimicrobial agents could be the subject of future research.

Nowadays, with the increase in diseases and consumers’ preference for organic foods, the use of natural plant compounds to improve and increase their shelf life is on the rise. In addition, the use of medicinal plants, which can have therapeutic properties, has attracted attention. Black seed oil has attracted a lot of attention in the past due to its unique therapeutic properties. The aim of this study was to investigate the antioxidant activity and evaluate the antimicrobial activity of black seed oil against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes and Bacillus cereus. The amount of phenolic compounds in black seed oil was measured by Folin-Ciocalteu. The antioxidant activity was determined by DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging methods. The antimicrobial effect of Nigella sativa oil was investigated according to well diffusion  agar, disk diffusion agar, interaction, minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration methods.The Nigella sativa oil had 16.25 mg GAE/g phenolic compounds. The antioxidant activity based on DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging were 86.62% and 94.85%, respectively.The Nigella sativa oil showed a significant antimicrobial effect on the tested microorganisms. In the combined mode (interaction) of Nigella sativa oil with chloramphenicol antibiotic, synergistic mode was observed for all bacterial strains. Given the significant antioxidant activity and antimicrobial effect of Nigella sativa, it can be used in food and pharmaceutical industries.

Chemical properties and antimicrobial effect of Thymus trautvetteri essential oil against some of the bacteria causing infection and food poisoning were evaluated in this study. For this purpose, T. trautvetteri essential oil was extracted with the help of hydrodistillation method and its total phenol content was based on Folin-Ciocalteu method, its antioxidant activity was based on DPPH and ABTS free radical inhibition methods and its antibacterial effect against Escherichia coli, Shigella dysenteriae, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus were investigated based on disc diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration methods. The results showed that T. trautvetteri essential oil contained 6.27 mg of catechin/g total phenol and its inhibitory activity against DPPH and ABTS free radicals was obtained as 12.32 and 10.20 mg/ml, respectively. The results of the antibacterial activity of the essential oil showed that S. aureus and E. coli were the most sensitive and resistant bacterial strains against T. trautvetteri essential oil, respectively. The inhibition zone in the disc diffusion agar and well diffusion agar methods, and the minimum inhibitory and bactericidal concentrations for S. aureus were 14.60 mm, 16 mm, 1 mg/ml and 4 mg/ml, respectively. According to the findings of this research, T. trautvetteri essential oil can be used as a natural antioxidant and antimicrobial agent to prevent oxidative reactions and microbial spoilage in food.

Nowadays, Functional food products as healthy diets have been considered extensively among consumers. Moreover, the use of particular microorganisms, for instance probiotic bacteria, offers probabilities to progress novel foods with appropriate shelf life. In the current research, in order to produce a functional ultrafiltrated (UF)-cheese, demineralized UF-whey powder (DUWP) at the levels of 0, 1 and 2%, and lactulose powder at the levels of 0 and 1% were used. Furthermore, bifidobacterium bifidum was used as probiotic bacteria. The textural characteristics in terms of hardness, cohesiveness, adhesiveness, springiness, gumminess and chewiness and sensorial propertis of the symbiotic cheese samples including odor, color, texture and taste were evaluated during 60 days of storage period at 4 ◦C. Results showed that addition of DUWP and lactulose powders except for adhesiveness and springiness caused significant decrease in all textural parameters (P<0.001). Besides, except for adhesiveness and cohesiveness, the mean values of textural parameters usually enhanced up to middle of the storage time and thereafter decreased up to end of storage period (p<0.05). Sensory results revealed that although addition of both DUWP and lactulose powders resulted in lower sensory scores, no significant differences were found between control (without DUWP and lactulose) and sample containing 1% of each both mentioned powders (P>0.05). Therefore, based on the obtained results, sample having 1% of DUWP and 1% of lactulose determined as the best symbiotic UF-cheese sample. Since the potential contribution of this product in community health promotion and reduction of diseases risk, the production and consumption of this functional cheese is proposed.

Prangos ferulacea is a plant that has been used in traditional medicine for its therapeutic properties. The present study was conducted to investigate the antifungal effect of P. ferulacea aqueous extract on Alternaria alternata, Alternaria solani, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Fusarium solani. The antifungal methods used were disc diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), and minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC). The extract concentrations used in the study were 20, 40, 60, and 80 mg/mL. The study found that the antifungal effect was concentration-dependent and increased with concentration. S. cerevisiae was the most sensitive species to the extract while F. solani was the most resistant. At 80 mg/mL, the inhibition zones for S. cerevisiae were found to be 11.90 mm and 13.00 mm in disc diffusion agar and well diffusion agar methods, respectively. The corresponding zones were 9.60 mm and 10.20 mm for F. solani, respectively. In the combined mode (interaction) of P. ferulacea aqueous extract with nystatin antibiotic, synergistic mode was observed for all fungal strains. The MIC and MFC values for S. cerevisiae were 32 and 128 mg/mL, respectively. The MIC and MFC results for F. solani were found to 256 and > 512 mg/mL, respectively. The results of this study showed that P. ferulacea aqueous extract could be used as a natural antifungal agent to inhibit the growth of pathogenic fungi on fresh fruits and vegetables.

The aim of this research was to optimize the formulation of a functional drink based on sugarcane juice using the response surface method (RSM) and in the form of Box Benken design. The ingredients used in the formulation were lemon juice (0.3, 6), turmeric (0.6, 0.3) and mint extract (0, 250, 500) in percentage and their physicochemical properties (pH, acidity, soluble solids, turbidity, color, total phenolic compounds, antioxidant activity) and sensory characteristics were investigated. The results showed that increasing the amount of lemon juice increased acidity, turbidity, L index, b index, phenolic compounds, antioxidant capacity and overall acceptance, but decreased pH, soluble solids and a index. The increase of turmeric caused a slight increase in the amount of soluble solids, b index and total phenolic compounds, while it decreased the antioxidant property and overall acceptance of the samples. With the increase in the amount of mint extract, turbidity, a and b indices, phenolic compounds and overall acceptance increased, but the amount of soluble solids and L index decreased. Finally, the optimization results showed that the sugarcane juice drink containing lemon juice (6%), turmeric (0.2%) and mint extract (418%) had the best physicochemical properties and the highest overall acceptance and can be recommended as a healthy drink in the industry.

Datura stramonium is well known as a valuable drug in many diseases including inflammation, wounds, fever and toothache, and its extract has significant antimicrobial activity. Therefore, this study was performed to isolate the ethanolic extract of D. stramonium leaves and to investigate its antimicrobial activity. In this study, D. stramonium extract was obtained using the maceration method. Antimicrobial methods of disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration were used to determine the antibacterial activity of ethanolic extract of D. stramonium leaves against Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus cereus. The antimicrobial activity of the extract was concentration dependent and the highest diameter of growth inhibition zone was observed at a concentration of 60 mg/ml of the extract. According to disk diffusion agar and well diffusion agar tests, S. aureus and S. typhimurium had the highest and lowest diameter of growth inhibition zones, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentrations for E. coli, S. typhimurium, S. aureus and B. cereus were 16, 16, 8 and 8 mg/ml, respectively, and the minimum bactericidal concentrations for these bacteria were 256, 256, 64, and 128 mg/ml, respectively. In general, Gram-positive bacteria were more sensitive to the extract than Gram-negative types. Ethanolic extract of D. stramonium leaves can be used as a natural antimicrobial agent to prevent the growth of pathogenic bacteria and treat related diseases.

During last decades, consumer awareness in importance of healthy intake has led their tendency towards the potential health benefits of particular foods and food ingredients. These conditions resulted in development of functional foods. In the current research, the effect of different concentrations of demineralized ultrafiltrated whey powder (DUWP) at levels of 0, 1 and 2% (W/V) and lactulose at levels of 0 and 1% (W/V) on symbiotic ultrafiltrated cheese were evaluated as a functional food. The color values, total acceptability and survival ability of Bifidobacterium bifidium during 60 days of storage at 4 °C were studied. Results showed that as the amount of lactulose and DUWP powders increased, the number of probiotics enhanced meaningfully, while the number of probiotic bacteria deceased with passing the storage time (p<0.001). However, the count of probiotic bacteria in samples containing lactulose and 1 or 2% DUWP at the end of 60 days of storage time were in the standard range of probiotic foods (>107 Log cfu/g). The colorimetric results showed that as the amount of DUWP and the storage time increased, the lightness (L*) decreased significantly (p<0.001); but addition of both powders had no significant effect on a* and b* values. Based on the obtained results, the synbiotic cheese containing 1% DUWP and 1% lactulose powder as compare to control sample had a higher count of probiotic bacteria. Meanwhile, no differences in color quality and total acceptability were found between these two samples. Therefore, this synbiotic ultrafiltrated cheese was determined as the best functional cheese sample.

Strawberry and grapes are generally infected with pathogenic fungi (e.g., Aspergillus niger, Botrytis cinerea, Rhizopus stolonifera, etc.). Synthetic fungicides are commonly used as the first line of defense against post-harvest pathogens on packaging lines. However, disposal of toxic waste is a costly process and the hazardous waste causes serious environmental problems. In addition, fungal pathogens have shown a worrying trend of resistance to these fungicides, thus shortening the shelf life of products. Compounds that can be equally effective in controlling pathogens, but preventing or minimizing the waste problems will be inevitable. The large volume of internationally processed agricultural products, as well as the increasing demand for organically produced fruits, emphasizes the need to replace synthetic fungicides with safer and biodegradable alternatives. Natural plant-derived products effectively meet this criterion and have great potential to influence modern agricultural research. Catechins and other polyphenols in green tea show strong antioxidant activity. Also, the antimicrobial activity of green tea extract against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans has been reported. Therefore, the present study was performed to prepare the ethanolic extract of green tea and to determine the content of total phenol, total flavonoids, antioxidant activity, and its antifungal effect against Aspergillus niger, Botrytis cinerea, and Rhizopus stolonifer (causing rot in strawberry and grapes).

Fresh green tea leaves were dried at room temperature and then powdered. Then, ethanol (70%) was added to the powdered leaves (solvent to powder ratio of 10:1 v/w) and the mixture was refluxed for 120 min. The resulting mixture was filtered through a filter paper and then concentrated under vacuum and finally dried in an oven.Total phenol content (by Folin-Ciocalteu reagent at 756 nm), total flavonoid content (spectrophotometrically at 510 nm), antioxidant activity (by DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging methods), and antifungal effect (by disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum fungicidal concentration) of the extract were evaluated.

The extract contained 175.60 mg GAE /g total phenol and 47.53 mg QE/g total flavonoids and its antioxidant activity using DPPH and ABTS free radical assays was 78.89% and 86.57%, respectively. The results of antifungal activity showed that the diameter of the growth inhibition zone increased significantly with increasing the concentration of the extract, and Botrytis cinerea and Rhizopus stolonifer were the most sensitive and resistant fungal strains to the extract, respectively. The minimum fungicidal concentrations for the strains of Botrytis cinerea and Rhizopus stolonifer were 64 and 512 mg/ml, respectively.

The results of the present study showed that the ethanolic extract of green tea could be considered as potential source of natural antioxidant and antifungal agents. The presence of phenolic and flavonoid compounds may be responsible for the antifungal and antioxidant effects of the extract. However, due to the fact that this study was performed with the crude extract of green tea, it is difficult to identify compounds responsible for antifungal and antioxidant activity. On this point, only the separation of the components of the extract allows the detection of antifungal and antioxidant compounds. This study provides a basis for further researches, in particular the use of these antioxidants and antifungal compounds. Green tea extract is especially suitable for products with high sensitivity to lipid oxidation and infection with molds.

Ultrafiltrated (UF)-white cheese is almost a new generation of white-cheeses that is produced throughout ultrafiltration process. This cheese has a soft and spreadable texture and is distributed in the market after a short storage period. Lactulose is a prebiotic compound that in addition to its positive effect on the growth of probiotic bacteria, its beneficial health effects on human well-being is proved. In the current research, synbiotic cheese samples were produced with the usage of demineralized ultrafiltrated whey powder (DUWP) at 3 levels of 0, 1 and 2%, lactulose at 2 levels of 0 and 1%, and bifidobacterium bifidum as probiotic bacteria. Experimental samples were analyzed and tested for physicochemical analysis including pH, acidity, moisture, syneresis, fat, protein and soluble nitrogen to total nitrogen ratio (TSN/TN) during 60 days of storage at 4 ◦C. Results revealed that addition of DUWP and lactulose, except for protein, had significant effects on the other tested parameters. In addition, the time of storage period had noticeable impact on all the examined physicochemical properties (P<0.01). Based on the results of this study, it was found that the best UF-white synbiotic cheese could be produced with the usage of 1% of each DUWP and lactulose powders.

Hyperspectral imaging, a technology that combines imaging and spectroscopy, provides extensive spatial and spectral information, simultaneously. It is currently being developed as a non-destructive and rapid diagnostic tool for assessing food quality and safety. In this study, hyperspectral imaging was utilized to investigate the process of bread staleness and its effect on the behavior of the bread crumb within the wavelength range of 950-400 nm and with a resolution of 0.795 nm. Principal components were extracted and three modeling methods - PCR, PLSR, and GRNN - were employed to predict texture characteristics during six days of storage. Based on the findings of this study, it was observed that the General Regression Neural Network (GRNN) method demonstrated superior performance in terms of R2 values for both springiness and stiffness, with values of 0.96 and 0.94, respectively. Furthermore, the GRNN method also exhibited the lowest Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) values for cohesiveness and stiffness, with values of 0.11 and 0.32, respectively. This demonstrates the capability of the generalized regression neural network model to predict the textural characteristics of bread.

 The addition of chemical preservatives increases the shelf life of food products, but prolonged and indiscriminate use of chemical preservatives increases the resistance of microorganisms and the health risks associated with theiruptake. Medicinal plants have a wide variety in the world as well as in Iran. In recent years, the use of natural preservatives such as plant extracts and essential oils, due to their importance and role in controlling the growth of pathogenic microorganisms, has been proposed as an alternative to chemical preservatives. Black pepper is an aromatic medicinal plant. The specific properties of black pepper essential oil, such as its antimicrobial and antioxidant activity, have also been confirmed. Amphotericin B is one of the effective antibiotics for treating infections caused by pathogenic fungi. The mechanism of action of amphotericin B is to destroy fungal cells in such a way that by binding to ergosterol in the cell membrane of fungi, it creates pores and eventually destroys them. One of the most important and common antibiotics used in the treatment of infections caused by pathogenic bacteria is chloramphenicol. This antibiotic is effective against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria due to its broad spectrum. The aim of this study was to identify bioactive functional groups, antioxidant potential, phenol and total flavonoid compounds and to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of black pepper extract against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus coagulans and Aspergillus niger.

 In this study, the antimicrobial effect of black pepper aqueous extract was investigated against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus coagulans and Aspergillus niger by disc diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration methods. Total phenol and flavonoid contents of the species were determined by Folin-Ciocalteu and AlCl3 assays, respectively. Three biochemical assays, namely 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2-azinobis 3-ethyl-benzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) free radical scavenging and β- caroten/linoleic acid activity systems, were used to evaluate antioxidant activity. Identification of functional groups as well as the structure of organic compounds in black pepper extract was also performed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). To evaluate the synergistic effect of black pepper extract in combination with amphotericin B and chloramphenicol antibiotics, Sub-MIC was used.

 The peaks observed in aqueous black pepper extract confirmed the presence of O-H (3000-3500 cm-1), C-H (2800-3000 cm-1), C=O (1613.62-1633.52 cm-1) and C-O (100.57-1038.82 cm-1) functional groups of bioactive compounds. The total phenol and flavonoids content of the extract were 45.12 mg GAE/g extract and its flavonoid content was 29.66 mg QUE/g extract which had an important role in its antioxidant activity. The aqueous black pepper extract had remarkable DPPH free radical scavenging activity (IC50=32.37 μg/ml), ABTS free radical scavenging activity (IC50=28.45 μg/ml) and beta-carotene bleaching inhibitory effect (46.45%), revealing the electron/hydrogen donating ability of the essential oil. The results of measuring the antimicrobial activity of extract by disk diffusion and agar well showed that black pepper extract showed more antimicrobial effect on gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus coagulans than gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This could be due to the difference in their cell wall structure. Aspergillus niger is the most sensitive species to aqueous black pepper extract. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of extract for Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus coagulans and Aspergillus niger were equal to 32, 16, 4, 8 and 4 mg/ml, respectively. The minimum bactericidal concentration of black pepper extract for two bacterial species, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was more than 512 mg/ml. Also, the minimum bactericidal concentration for Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus coagulans was 128 and 256 mg/ml, respectively, and 128 mg/ml for Aspergillus niger. The results of interaction of black pepper extract with chloramphenicol antibiotic showed that the Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus were synergistic, but antagonism was observed for the gram-positive Bacillus coagulans.

The aim of this study was to isolate the ethanolic extract of Quercus persica leaves via maceration method and determination of its total phenol content (via Folin-Ciocalteu method), total flavonoid content (via aluminium chloride colorimetric method), antioxidant activity (based on DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging methods), and antimicrobial effect (based on disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration procedures). The extract contained 79.21 mg GAE/g phenolic compounds and 35.10 mg QE/g flavonoid compounds. The leaf ethanolic extract of Q. persica had a remarkable antioxidant activity, and it showed 52.60% DPPH free radical scavenging effect and 60.50% ABTS free radical scavenging activity. The extract had a concentration-dependent antimicrobial activity. The highest and lowest inhibition zones were respectively observed for Staphylococcus epidermidis (18.60 mm) and Salmonella typhi (14.80 mm), through disk diffusion agar method, in the presence of 100 mg.ml-1 extract. In well diffusion agar method, the inhibition zones for the above bacterial species were 14.90 mm and 15.10 mm, respectively. Moreover, the minimum inhibitory concentrations for the sensitive species (S. epidermidis) and the resistant bacteria (S. typhi) were 32 and 256 mg.ml-1, respectively. The results of this study show that the leaf ethanolic extract of Q. persica could be used as a naturally bioactive compound to substitute synthetic preservative agents.

The aim of this study was to investigate the phytochemical analysis and antifungal activities of ethanolic extract of Ficus benghalensis on the growth of fungal strains causing rot in orange fruit during storage (Penicillium digitatum and Penicillium italicum). Total phenol content was evaluated according to Folin-Ciocalteu method, total flavonoid content was evaluated according to aluminum chloride colorimetric method, and antioxidant activity was evaluated based on DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging methods. Various methods (disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum fungicidal concentration) were used to evaluate the antifungal activity of ethanolic extract of F. benghalensis. The amount of phenol and flavonoids in the whole extract was 110.49 mg GAE/g and 62.60 mg QE/g, respectively. Antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract of F. benghalensis based on DPPH and ABTS radical inhibition methods was 48.56 and 57.20 μg/ml, respectively. The results of disk diffusion agar and well diffusion agar tests showed that the antifungal activity of the extract was concentration dependent and the fungal strains of Penicillium digitatum and Penicillium italicum with the lowest and highest diameter of growth inhibition zone, were the most resistant and sensitive species to the extract, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentrations for the above strains were 16 and 8 mg/ml, respectively, and the minimum fungicidal concentrations were 512 and 128 mg/ml, respectively. According to the results, ethanolic extract of F. benghalensis is an important source of antioxidant and antifungal compounds and can be used to increase the shelf life of food products.

The present study was carried out to investigate the effect of using nanoliposomes vitamin D3 (NVitD) in diet on performance and egg quality of laying hens. One hundred and twenty Leghorn laying hens (Hy-line W-80 Commercial strain) were used in a completely randomized design with four treatments, five replicates and six hens per replicate for six weeks. The treatments consisted of: 1- control with 3300 IU VitD/kg of diet, 2- 4950 IU VitD/kg of diet 3- 3300 IU NVitD/kg of diet and 4- 4950 IU NVitD/kg of diet. In the second three weeks of the experiment, the hens that received 4950 IU VitD/kg in their diet had the most feed intake in comparison with others. The egg yolk VitD content was increased significantly with increasing VitD concentration in hens diet. In equal amounts of diet VitD, application of nanoliposomes reduced the VitD content of egg yolk. Egg yolk cholesterol concentrations increased when using NVitD. The results of the present experiment showed that the use of NVitD did not have a significant effect on the production performance and egg quality traits of laying hens.

Strawberries have a very short shelf-life due to their high sensitivity to fungal agents. The use of chemical antifungal compounds to increase the shelf life of this fruit has raised many concerns. For this reason, it is necessary to use safe methods to control spoilage and maintain the quality of strawberry fruit during storage. In this study, the effect of coating with Persian gum containing vanillin on the shelf life of strawberry fruit was evaluated. The levels of gum used in the preparation of the coating solution were 3%, 3.75 and 4% (w / v) and vanillin was added to the coating solution at three levels of 5, 6 and 7 mM. The studied characteristics included weight loss percentage, general acceptance, acidity, soluble solids, breakdown percentage, anthocyanin content, texture analysis and vitamin C content. The results showed an improvement in the appearance of coated fruits compared to control samples and also a significant reduction in the percentage of spoilage and weight loss in coated samples compared to the control. According to the results, the titratable acidity and texture firmness in the treated fruits improved compared to the control samples. Anthocyanin content and vitamin C content in the coated samples decreased but the rate of decrease was much slower compared to the control samples. Overall acceptance in the coated samples decreased slightly compared to the control sample. Finally, the best formulation was determined to contain 3.96% (W/V) of Persian gum, 0.857 mM vanillin and 2% (V/V) of glycerol.

The aim of this study was to extract Salvia mirzayanii essential oil, and determine its chemical properties and antifungal activity against fungi causing post-harvest rot in apple fruit (Penicillium expansum, Botrytis cinerea, and Alternaria alternata). Total phenol content (by Folin Ciocalteu method), total flavonoid content (by aluminum chloride colorimetric method), antioxidant activity (based on DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging methods), and antifungal activity (based on disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum fungicidal concentration) of the essential oil were determined. The essential oil contained 43.40 mg GAE/g total phenol and 17.19 mg QE/g total flavonoids. In addition, S. mirzayanii essential oil significantly inhibited DPPH (62.70 μg/ml) and ABTS (78.80 μg/ml) free radicals. According to the results of antifungal tests, Botrytis cinerea and Penicillium expansum were the most sensitive and resistant fungal strains to the essential oil, respectively. In general, S. mirzayanii essential oil can be used to control the oxidation reactions and fungal spoilage in food products.

Food gums are additives that play variety of roles such as consistency, gel formation, and stabilizing in food solutions. In this study, the best conditions for extracting Quince seed gum as well as its antioxidant and physicochemical properties were investigated. Extraction of gum was optimized using microwave power (250 -850 W), water to grain ratio (20-60) and time (2-9 min), by the response surface methodology. Gum physicochemical properties including ash, moisture, protein and fat were measured and antioxidant properties were evaluated by DPPH, ABTS, FRAP and β-carotene/linoleic acid bleaching assay. The extraction efficiency was in the range of 8.9% to 15.2%. As the microwave power increases in constant time, gum extraction efficiency increases, but the simultaneous power increases with increasing treatment time, resulted in decreasing gum extraction. Increasing time by keeping the power constant, initially resulted in an increase in extraction and afterward resulted in lower gum extraction. Results of scavenging capacity and antioxidant properties measured using DPPH, FRAP, ABTS and beta –carotene bleaching assay were 53.19 μg/ml, 1.06 μg/ml, 69.61 μg/ml, 2.92 μg/100g respectively, and the amount of total phenol and flavonoids were 74.66 mg GAE/g  and 670.21mg QE/g respectively.

Oxidation and food pathogens are considered two important and influential factors affecting food quality and health. Recently, due to the increasing demand for natural products, the application of synthetic preservatives to control microbial growth and lipid oxidation have been decreased significantly. Therefore, natural antioxidant and antimicrobial compounds are receiving more attention in food preservation technologies. In the last 2 decades, the use of herbal medicines rich in bioactive molecules (including polyphenols, carotenoids and flavonoids) with medicinal and health effects such as delaying the onset of some diseases such as cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, and cancer have increased. Furthermore, secondary metabolites in plant extracts and essential oils are able to control and inhibit free radical-mediated reactions. The olive tree (Olea europaea) is an evergreen plant that grows in tropical and subtropical regions. Iran is one of the most important olive growers in the world due to its suitable conditions for olive cultivation. The leaves of the olive plant have a high potential for the production of various products such as tea and extracts. Olive leaf extract can be used as a raw material in the production of various products, due to exhibiting various biological activities such as antimicrobial and antiviral activity, lipid stabilizer, blood pressure regulator, antioxidant activity, and free radical scavenger. The leaves of the olive tree also contain various phenolic compounds, mainly Oleuropein and hydroxytyrosol, with antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. Therefore, in this study, the amount of phenolic and flavonoid compounds of olive leaf ethanolic extract and its antioxidant effect and antimicrobial properties on Escherichia coli, Enterobacter aerogenesis, Bacillus cereus and Listeria innocua were investigated. 

The olive leaf ethanolic extract was prepared through maceration method and its total phenolic content (Folin-Ciocalteu method), total flavonoids content (aluminum chloride colorimetric assay), antioxidant activity (ABTS and DPPH free radical scavenging methods), and antimicrobial effect on E. coli, E. aerogenesis, B. cereus and L. innocua (based on disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum bactericidal concentration) were determined according to standard methods. Data were analyzed by SPSS software through one-way ANOVA and Duncan test at p<0.05.  

The ethanolic extract of olive leaves contained 176.58 ± 0.72 mg GAE/g total phenol and 69.85 ± 0.26 mg QE/g total flavonoids. In addition, ethanolic extract of olive leaf was able to inhibit free radicals DPPH (70.62 ± 0.59%) and ABTS (76.15 ± 0.43%). The antimicrobial results showed that the antimicrobial effect of the extract depended on its concentration and type of bacteria. Antimicrobial effect was increased as a function of ethanolic extract, and Gram-positive bacteria (B. cereus and L. innocua) were more sensitive to ethanolic extract of olive leaf than Gram-negative bacteria (E. aerogenesis and E. coli). Generally, B. cereus and E. aerogenesis were the most sensitive and resistant microbial strains to ethanolic extract of olive leaf, respectively.The results of this study showed that the high antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of olive leaf ethanolic extract is mainly due to its phenolic and flavonoid compounds. Olive leaf ethanolic extract was able to neutralize DPPH and ABTS free radicals. Also, Gram-positive bacteria were more sensitive to ethanolic extract of olive leaf than Gram-negative bacteria. In general, the ethanolic extract of olive leaf can be used as a nutraceutical to control or prevent the growth of spoilage/infection-causing microorganisms and free radical reactions in food and the human body. However, more in-depth studies are needed to determine the mechanism of antimicrobial and antioxidant effects of olive ethanolic extract in vitro and in vivo.

Economic losses can occur due to the growth of fungi on foods that lead to food spoilage and plant diseases. Fruits and vegetables are often exposed to microbial activity, caused by pathogenic fungi, during post-harvest storage. Diseases of food origin are a growing public health problem. Thus, food safety has become a major public concern as microbial contamination increases the risk of foodborne illnesses and shortens the shelf life of foods. Infection with fungi such as Aspergillus, Rhizopus, and Penicillium species is considered as the primary cause of rapid spoilage of fresh produce, which reduces their quality and shelf life. Synthetic fungicides have been applied to solve this problem for many years. Nonetheless, the adverse effects of synthetic chemicals on human health and the emergence of fungicide-resistant strains have motivated the scientists and food industries to find out safe preservatives to control postharvest rot/diseases. On this point, natural antimicrobial agents such as plant extracts and essential oils are gaining more and more interest. In this study, we used Levisticum officinale Koch essential oil, which its antimicrobial and antioxidant activity has been reported in literatures. 

L. officinale Koch essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation method and its total phenol content, total flavonoids, antioxidant activity (based on DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging and β-carotene bleaching tests) and its antifungal effect against fungi causing apple and orange rotting (Alternaria alternata, Penicillium expansum, Penicillium digitatum, Penicillium italicum, and Botrytis cinerea) were examined according to antimicrobial tests of disk diffusion agar, well diffusion agar, minimum inhibitory concentration, and minimum fungicidal concentration. 

L. officinale Koch essential oil contained 61.27 ± 0.34 mg GAE/g and 20.14 ± 0.21 mg QE/g total phenol and flavonoids, respectively. Its antioxidant activity, based on DPPH free radical scavenging, ABTS free radical scavenging, and β-carotene bleaching inhibition were 69.72 ± 0.65%, 78.54 ± 0.3% and 57.50 ± 0.41%, respectively. L. officinale Koch essential oil was effective against all fungal species and the highest susceptibility was observed for Penicillium expansum. According to the results, L. officinale Koch essential oil can be used as a natural antifungal agent to prevent post-harvest diseases of fruits and vegetables.

Food is one of the most basic necessities of life and access to it is the most basic right of every human being, but despite the efforts made to reduce hunger and poverty, there are still many concerns about food security in different societies. Therefore, it is important to conduct studies that can determine the access of rural households to safe and sufficient food. In this regard, This study was conducted with the general aim of factors affecting the improvement of food security of rural households. The statistical population of this study included all rural households in Hindijan city in Khuzestan province (N = 1906). Using Krejcie and Morgan table, 230 heads of rural households were selected by stratified random sampling with proportional assignment for the study. The results showed that the rural households in the study are not in a good position in terms of food security because about 70% of them were in food insecurity. The results of correlation coefficient showed that food security has a significant relationship with the variables of number of small ruminant, large animal, agricultural land, income, adaptability, access to credit, social capital, education level, quality of agricultural land. In addition, the results of stepwise regression showed that the three variables of social capital, farmers' adaptability and level of education could explain 51.7% (R2 = 0.517) of the changes in food security dependent variables of the studied households.

Bacteriocins are generally defined as peptides or proteins ribosomal synthesized by bacteria that inhibit or kill other microorganisms. Nowadays, bacteriocin industry as natural preservatives have substantially grown replacing the role of chemical preservatives in enhancing shelf-life and safety of food. The progress in bacteriocin study has been supported by the emerging of consumer demand on the applications of natural food preservatives. In this study, Lactobacillus helveticus were identified using the 16S rRNA gene sequencing method. The antimicrobial activity of the neutralized supernatant of Lactobacillus helveticus against some pathogenic microorganisms was investigated. Then, the different properties of this bacteriocin compound, such as its protein nature, heat and pH resistance, as well as the storage temperature on its stability, were examined. In this study, the supernatant of L. helveticus, showed antimicrobial activity against 7 pathogenic bacteria with 8.5-18.7 mm diameter in inhibition zone. The bacteriocin produced by L. helveticus was completely sensitive to proteinase K, α-chymotrypsin, protease, and trypsin; however, after exposure to pepsin, the activity was reduced by about 41% for Staphylococcus aureus and about 30% for Micrococcus luteus. Supernatants containing bacteriocin were resistant to different temperatures as well as pHs 2 to 11. Also, the best temperature for storing the studied bacteriocin was -80 oC for 1 month. The ability of bacteriocin produced by L. helveticus to inhibit growth of various pathogens as well as high stability to pH and temperature can be introduced it as a natural preservative.