Antimicrobial Activity and Chemical Characterization of a Non-Polar Extract of Saffron Stamens in Food Matrix
The production of saffron spice generates large quantities of plant by-products: over 90% of the plant material collected is discarded, and a consideration fraction of this waste is plant stamens. This work investigated the chemical composition and the antimicrobial activities of the non-polar fract...
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MDPI AG
2021-03-01
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author | Severino Zara Giacomo L. Petretto Alberto Mannu Giacomo Zara Marilena Budroni Ilaria Mannazzu Chiara Multineddu Giorgio Pintore Francesco Fancello |
author_facet | Severino Zara Giacomo L. Petretto Alberto Mannu Giacomo Zara Marilena Budroni Ilaria Mannazzu Chiara Multineddu Giorgio Pintore Francesco Fancello |
author_sort | Severino Zara |
collection | DOAJ |
description | The production of saffron spice generates large quantities of plant by-products: over 90% of the plant material collected is discarded, and a consideration fraction of this waste is plant stamens. This work investigated the chemical composition and the antimicrobial activities of the non-polar fraction extracted from four different saffron flower stamens. The chemical composition of ethereal extracts of the saffron stamens was qualitatively assessed by means of gas–chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses. These analyses revealed ethereal extracts to possess a high polyunsaturated fatty acid content. In vitro antibacterial activity of stamen extracts showed no large differences between Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria in terms of minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC). In food matrix microbial analysis of the bacterial strains belonging to the main foodborne pathogen species, including <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> DSM 20231, <i>Escherichia coli</i> DSM 30083, and <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> DSM 20600, using low-fat UHT milk, revealed a statistically significant reduction in the number of cells (particularly for <i>E. coli</i> and <i>S. aureus</i> with a complete elimination of the population of the two target bacteria following incubation in diethyl ether extracts of saffron stamen (DES) at high concentrations tested, both at 37 °C and 6 °C (for 48 h and 7 days, respectively). A synergic effect was observed when the pathogens were incubated at 6 °C with DES. This work shows these by-products to be excellent sources of bioactive compounds, which could be exploited in high-added-value products, such as food, cosmetics, and drugs. |
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language | English |
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publishDate | 2021-03-01 |
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series | Foods |
spelling | doaj.art-2bc45170f35d4480afe428afd0e8c1e62023-11-21T12:07:13ZengMDPI AGFoods2304-81582021-03-0110470310.3390/foods10040703Antimicrobial Activity and Chemical Characterization of a Non-Polar Extract of Saffron Stamens in Food MatrixSeverino Zara0Giacomo L. Petretto1Alberto Mannu2Giacomo Zara3Marilena Budroni4Ilaria Mannazzu5Chiara Multineddu6Giorgio Pintore7Francesco Fancello8Department di Agricultural Sciences, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment di Agricultural Sciences, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment di Agricultural Sciences, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment di Agricultural Sciences, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment di Agricultural Sciences, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyDepartment di Agricultural Sciences, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, ItalyThe production of saffron spice generates large quantities of plant by-products: over 90% of the plant material collected is discarded, and a consideration fraction of this waste is plant stamens. This work investigated the chemical composition and the antimicrobial activities of the non-polar fraction extracted from four different saffron flower stamens. The chemical composition of ethereal extracts of the saffron stamens was qualitatively assessed by means of gas–chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses. These analyses revealed ethereal extracts to possess a high polyunsaturated fatty acid content. In vitro antibacterial activity of stamen extracts showed no large differences between Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria in terms of minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC). In food matrix microbial analysis of the bacterial strains belonging to the main foodborne pathogen species, including <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> DSM 20231, <i>Escherichia coli</i> DSM 30083, and <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> DSM 20600, using low-fat UHT milk, revealed a statistically significant reduction in the number of cells (particularly for <i>E. coli</i> and <i>S. aureus</i> with a complete elimination of the population of the two target bacteria following incubation in diethyl ether extracts of saffron stamen (DES) at high concentrations tested, both at 37 °C and 6 °C (for 48 h and 7 days, respectively). A synergic effect was observed when the pathogens were incubated at 6 °C with DES. This work shows these by-products to be excellent sources of bioactive compounds, which could be exploited in high-added-value products, such as food, cosmetics, and drugs.https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/10/4/703by-productsliposoluble fractionantimicrobial activitypolyunsaturated fatty acid |
spellingShingle | Severino Zara Giacomo L. Petretto Alberto Mannu Giacomo Zara Marilena Budroni Ilaria Mannazzu Chiara Multineddu Giorgio Pintore Francesco Fancello Antimicrobial Activity and Chemical Characterization of a Non-Polar Extract of Saffron Stamens in Food Matrix Foods by-products liposoluble fraction antimicrobial activity polyunsaturated fatty acid |
title | Antimicrobial Activity and Chemical Characterization of a Non-Polar Extract of Saffron Stamens in Food Matrix |
title_full | Antimicrobial Activity and Chemical Characterization of a Non-Polar Extract of Saffron Stamens in Food Matrix |
title_fullStr | Antimicrobial Activity and Chemical Characterization of a Non-Polar Extract of Saffron Stamens in Food Matrix |
title_full_unstemmed | Antimicrobial Activity and Chemical Characterization of a Non-Polar Extract of Saffron Stamens in Food Matrix |
title_short | Antimicrobial Activity and Chemical Characterization of a Non-Polar Extract of Saffron Stamens in Food Matrix |
title_sort | antimicrobial activity and chemical characterization of a non polar extract of saffron stamens in food matrix |
topic | by-products liposoluble fraction antimicrobial activity polyunsaturated fatty acid |
url | https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/10/4/703 |
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