Nitya Sharma

Millets are a crucial food crop with major economic benefits for developing nations. They are regarded as healthy foods that produce a lot of energy and can help alleviate malnutrition. Millets are nutritious cereals that are rich in protein, vitamin B, essential fatty acids, and minerals such as calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, and zinc. By acting on multiple molecular targets, a diverse group of phytochemicals found in millets has proved their physiological relevance in the prevention of chronic illnesses. Millets have shown a variety of biological qualities such as antibacterial, antioxidant, anti-hypertensive, anti-cancer, and antidiabetic, and they have been reported to carry out multiple regulatory roles both in vitro and in vivo. The use of millet in conjunction with other basic food crops to create food substitutes has emerged as a new field in the food industry.

Finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.), ragi or mandua, is one of essential minor millets extensively grown in the Indian and African subcontinents. It is a staple food in India, particularly for people belonging to low-socioeconomic groups. Finger millet is highly valued for its content of macro- and micronutrients. It is rich in carbohydrates, protein, and fat. Its micronutrients include calcium (0.38%), dietary fiber (18%), and phenolic compounds (0.3–3%), such as catechin, epicatechin, as well as ferulic, salicylic, protocatechuic, cinnamic, and hydroxybenzoic acids, etc. Finger millet is also recognized as a source of vital amino acids, including isoleucine, leucine, methionine, and phenylalanine, which are otherwise deficient in starchy meals. In addition, finger millet is well appreciated for its pharmacological properties such as anti-diabetic, anti-tumorigenic, anti-atherosclerogenic, antioxidant, and antimicrobial effects. To improve its nutritional and sensory properties, this grain can be processed by various traditional and advanced methods (soaking, malting, cooking, fermentation, popping, and radiation). These processing techniques equally assist in the reduction of anti-nutritional factors (tannins, phytic acid, oxalic acid, protein inhibitors, glucans) and their inhibitory effects. In this review, we highlighted the nutritional composition, health attributes, and uses of finger millet for the development of functional food products. Researchers and producers can further explore the opportunities and scope for utilizing finger millet and develop more products in the same line to solve the current issues of food and nutrition security.

Editorial: Advances in millet research as a sustainable food source

Millets exist in a variety of colours, and their kernel colour is a key criterion for determining market value and nutritional quality. Carotenoids and polyphenols are naturally occurring pigments distributed in varied quantities in different species of pigmented millets. These compounds not only provide health benefits, but also help in the prevention of chronic disorders related to oxidative stress. Because of their high concentrations of minerals, polyphenols, vitamins, and a range of biologically active chemicals, pigmented wheat and rice have recently garnered considerable attention. However, minor cereals with great local significance, like pigmented millets, are yet to be explored. This chapter comprehensively describes colour-imparting compounds in millets, i.e. carotenoids and anthocyanins, their nutritional characteristics, and potential health implications.

The intake of tomato in its natural form is comparatively restricted due to its limited shelf-life. Thereby, we investigated the willingness of consumers and optimized the proportions of beverages on the basis of the overall liking of the sensory panel. Further, molecular docking was also performed to evaluate the protein-ligand interactions of vitamin C, lycopene, and β-carotene against CR protein. These compounds showed great interactions with the protein targets leading to the enhancement of antioxidant activity. The most acceptable combination (S4 = 50:50 tomato and pineapple juices) was subjected to thermal processing at 70, 80, and 90 °C, respectively. Biochemical parameters such as acidity, vitamin C, non-enzymatic browning, antioxidant capacity, and total phenolics were found to be optimum in the beverage samples treated at 80 °C. It was revealed that the microbial shelf-life of beverages enhanced with an increase in processing temperatures. The untreated beverage samples could only retain a shelf-life of 4 days, however, samples treated at 80 °C for 60 s were rendered fit for 40 ± 2 days. Therefore, with the help of molecular docking, this manuscript assessed the protein-ligand interaction with the thermally induced quality changes in tomato-based beverages.

Cereals and cereal-based products are primary sources of nutrition across the world. However, contamination of these foods with aflatoxins (AFs), secondary metabolites produced by several fungal species, has raised serious concerns. AF generation in innate substrates is influenced by several parameters, including the substrate type, fungus species, moisture content, minerals, humidity, temperature, and physical injury to the kernels. Consumption of AF-contaminated cereals and cereal-based products can lead to both acute and chronic health issues related to physical and mental maturity, reproduction, and the nervous system. Therefore, the precise detection methods, detoxification, and management strategies of AFs in cereal and cereal-based products are crucial for food safety as well as consumer health. Hence, this review provides a brief overview of the occurrence, chemical characteristics, biosynthetic processes, health hazards, and detection techniques of AFs, along with a focus on detoxification and management strategies that could be implemented for food safety and security.

Millets have a distinctive protein composition comprising of high concentrations of essential amino acids with numerous health‐promoting characteristics. Through various in vitro and animal research studies, a variety of millet‐based bioactive peptides isolated from millets have given significant evidence of their health‐improving properties. However, the processing technique significantly impacts the biological activity of these millet peptides. The amount, structure, and function of major and minor millet proteins are influenced by different processing techniques. Studies have demonstrated that germination and fermentation increase bioavailability, in vitro protein digestibility, and protein efficiency. Moreover, the innovative processing techniques viz: microwave, ultrasound, and high‐pressure processing had a significant impact on structural and quality attributes of the millet proteins and their fractionation. The non‐thermal processing ensured the modification of structure and stability with the enhancement of functionality of the millet protein. The present review has been designed to summarize the major health benefits of millet proteins and the effect of various processing methods on their quality attributes. The information provided in the review would play an important role in further research and development activities at the commercial scale governing the improvement in millet protein efficiency, modification, bioavailability, and in vitro protein digestibility by different processing techniques.Novelty impact statement: This review summarized the recent research on the major health benefits of millet proteins and the influence of different processing methods on bioactive peptides from major and minor millets.

Citrinin (CIT) is a mycotoxin produced by different species of Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Monascus. CIT can contaminate a wide range of foods and feeds at any time during the pre-harvest, harvest, and post-harvest stages. CIT can be usually found in beans, fruits, fruit and vegetable juices, herbs and spices, and dairy products, as well as red mold rice. CIT exerts nephrotoxic and genotoxic effects in both humans and animals, thereby raising concerns regarding the consumption of CIT-contaminated food and feed. Hence, to minimize the risk of CIT contamination in food and feed, understanding the incidence of CIT occurrence, its sources, and biosynthetic pathways could assist in the effective implementation of detection and mitigation measures. Therefore, this review aims to shed light on sources of CIT, its prevalence in food and feed, biosynthetic pathways, and genes involved, with a major focus on detection and management strategies to ensure the safety and security of food and feed.