Carob Syrup: Prebiotic Potential of a Neglected Functional Beverage of Mediterranean Countries
Carob syrup, a traditional Mediterranean functional beverage obtained from <i>Ceratonia siliqua</i> (L.) pods, has been historically valued for its nutritional properties but is currently underutilized. This study compared the prebiotic potential of three handmade carob syrups produced b...
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MDPI AG
2024-12-01
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| author | Lorenzo Nissen Davide Addazii Flavia Casciano Francesca Danesi Maria Teresa Rodriguez-Estrada Dario Mercatante Siwar Ben Ayache Achour Lotfi Anagnostis Argiriou Georgia Ayfantopoulou Andrea Gianotti |
| author_facet | Lorenzo Nissen Davide Addazii Flavia Casciano Francesca Danesi Maria Teresa Rodriguez-Estrada Dario Mercatante Siwar Ben Ayache Achour Lotfi Anagnostis Argiriou Georgia Ayfantopoulou Andrea Gianotti |
| author_sort | Lorenzo Nissen |
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| description | Carob syrup, a traditional Mediterranean functional beverage obtained from <i>Ceratonia siliqua</i> (L.) pods, has been historically valued for its nutritional properties but is currently underutilized. This study compared the prebiotic potential of three handmade carob syrups produced by Tunisian women with commercial benchmarks from Italy, Greece and Cyprus. The prebiotic activity was evaluated by prebiotic scores, bifidogenic activity and volatilome characterization (SPME GC/MS) together with physicochemical and nutritional parameters. The results showed that Tunisian handmade products exhibited lower growth of pathogenic Escherichia coli compared to commercial samples. The prebiotic activity, tested against probiotic lactobacilli and bifidobacteria mixtures, showed a hierarchy of efficacy: fructo-oligosaccharides (FOSs) > Tunisian handmade products > Greek and Cypriot benchmarks > Italian benchmark. Volatilome analysis revealed about 40 compounds, mainly organic acids and aldehydes, with higher concentrations in handmade products. Positive correlations were found between prebiotic activity and short-chain fatty acids and n-hexadecanoic acid, while furfural showed negative correlations. The Tunisian artisanal products showed a higher prebiotic potential compared to the commercial counterparts, due to their higher content and diversity of organic acids. However, the presence of furfural in Tunisian products needs to be monitored due to potential toxicity concerns. |
| format | Article |
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| spelling | doaj-art-82bc9f75819249ec81dd0fee7ecd46e32025-08-20T02:55:41ZengMDPI AGFoods2304-81582024-12-011324417210.3390/foods13244172Carob Syrup: Prebiotic Potential of a Neglected Functional Beverage of Mediterranean CountriesLorenzo Nissen0Davide Addazii1Flavia Casciano2Francesca Danesi3Maria Teresa Rodriguez-Estrada4Dario Mercatante5Siwar Ben Ayache6Achour Lotfi7Anagnostis Argiriou8Georgia Ayfantopoulou9Andrea Gianotti10DiSTAL—Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDiSTAL—Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDiSTAL—Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDiSTAL—Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDiSTAL—Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDiSTAL—Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyBIOLIVAL—Bioresources: Biologie Integrative & Valorisation, Institut Supérieur de Biotechnologie de Monastir (ISBM), Av. Taher El Hadded BP74, Monastir 5000, TunisiaBIOLIVAL—Bioresources: Biologie Integrative & Valorisation, Institut Supérieur de Biotechnologie de Monastir (ISBM), Av. Taher El Hadded BP74, Monastir 5000, TunisiaUOA-FNS—Department of Food Science and Nutrition, University of the Aegean, University Hill, 81100 Mytilene, GreeceCERTH/HIT—Centre for Research and Technology Hellas—Hellenic Institute of Transport, 6th km Charilaou—Thermi Rd., Thermi, 57001 Thessaloniki, GreeceDiSTAL—Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyCarob syrup, a traditional Mediterranean functional beverage obtained from <i>Ceratonia siliqua</i> (L.) pods, has been historically valued for its nutritional properties but is currently underutilized. This study compared the prebiotic potential of three handmade carob syrups produced by Tunisian women with commercial benchmarks from Italy, Greece and Cyprus. The prebiotic activity was evaluated by prebiotic scores, bifidogenic activity and volatilome characterization (SPME GC/MS) together with physicochemical and nutritional parameters. The results showed that Tunisian handmade products exhibited lower growth of pathogenic Escherichia coli compared to commercial samples. The prebiotic activity, tested against probiotic lactobacilli and bifidobacteria mixtures, showed a hierarchy of efficacy: fructo-oligosaccharides (FOSs) > Tunisian handmade products > Greek and Cypriot benchmarks > Italian benchmark. Volatilome analysis revealed about 40 compounds, mainly organic acids and aldehydes, with higher concentrations in handmade products. Positive correlations were found between prebiotic activity and short-chain fatty acids and n-hexadecanoic acid, while furfural showed negative correlations. The Tunisian artisanal products showed a higher prebiotic potential compared to the commercial counterparts, due to their higher content and diversity of organic acids. However, the presence of furfural in Tunisian products needs to be monitored due to potential toxicity concerns.https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/13/24/4172locustbean5-hydroxymethylfurfuralvolatilomemultivariate analysisbifidobacterialactobacilli |
| spellingShingle | Lorenzo Nissen Davide Addazii Flavia Casciano Francesca Danesi Maria Teresa Rodriguez-Estrada Dario Mercatante Siwar Ben Ayache Achour Lotfi Anagnostis Argiriou Georgia Ayfantopoulou Andrea Gianotti Carob Syrup: Prebiotic Potential of a Neglected Functional Beverage of Mediterranean Countries Foods locustbean 5-hydroxymethylfurfural volatilome multivariate analysis bifidobacteria lactobacilli |
| title | Carob Syrup: Prebiotic Potential of a Neglected Functional Beverage of Mediterranean Countries |
| title_full | Carob Syrup: Prebiotic Potential of a Neglected Functional Beverage of Mediterranean Countries |
| title_fullStr | Carob Syrup: Prebiotic Potential of a Neglected Functional Beverage of Mediterranean Countries |
| title_full_unstemmed | Carob Syrup: Prebiotic Potential of a Neglected Functional Beverage of Mediterranean Countries |
| title_short | Carob Syrup: Prebiotic Potential of a Neglected Functional Beverage of Mediterranean Countries |
| title_sort | carob syrup prebiotic potential of a neglected functional beverage of mediterranean countries |
| topic | locustbean 5-hydroxymethylfurfural volatilome multivariate analysis bifidobacteria lactobacilli |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/13/24/4172 |
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