Bülent Başyiğit

The environmental and health impact of petroleum-derived synthetic plastics has increased the demand for renewable and biodegradable food packaging materials To meet this requirement, biocomposite films were carefully made using either hydrophilic pea protein (PP) or hydrophobic cottonseed protein (CSP) matrices. The proportions of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) were gradually increased at 0%, 1%, 3%, and 5% w/w to observe their effects. The physical, mechanical, and barrier properties of the produced films were compared. The results demonstrated that a 3% (w/w) MCC ratio was optimal for inclusion in both protein matrices. Incorporating 3% (w/w) MCC increased the tensile strength (TS) to 17.68 MPa for PP and 8.24 MPa for CSP, due to the uniform distribution of crystalline cellulose particles within the polymer matrix. Additionally, thanks to the physical barriers to fracture within the matrix (the circuitous path effect), water vapor permeability (WVP) was reduced to 0.31 and 0.21 g·mm/m²·h·kPa, respectively, achieving maximum water resistance. In a 30-day oxidation test using sunflower oil as a real-food simulant, the CSP-3 film demonstrated an excellent oxygen barrier, keeping the peroxide value (PV) (5.80 meq O₂/kg) at its minimum. This effectiveness results from the hydrophobic properties of cottonseed protein combined with the synergistic interaction of MCC. Conversely, at a 5% (w/w) concentration of MCC, minor reductions in barrier efficacy were observed, presumably due to aggregation and phase separation. In summary, evaluating MCC with CSP (an industrial byproduct) reveals it as a great sustainable alternative for bio-packaging, providing strong mechanical properties and notable resistance to oxidation.

This study presents a new method to meet the increasing need for sustainable and bioactive food packaging by creating biocomposite films. These films are made by emulsifying 3% (v/w) cold-pressed pomegranate seed oil (PSO) and sour cherry seed oil (SCSO) into a hydrophilic pea protein matrix. The resulting active packaging materials, referred to as PSOF and SCSOF, were thoroughly compared with a control film made of oil-free pea protein (PPF). Adding these hydrophobic lipids notably increased the matrix's thickness from 0.05 to 0.11 mm and also decreased its moisture content from 23.42% to 12.61%. The distribution of oil droplets caused significant light scattering, raising opacity (1.88-2.45) and lowering surface lightness (L*: 86.57 to 76.33), indicating improved photoprotection. Mechanically, the active lipids acted as plasticizers. While tensile strength (TS) (8.05 to 5.10 MPa) decreased, elongation at break (EB) improved drastically to 133.47%, enhancing flexibility. Also, the PSOF formulation exhibited outstanding barrier efficacy, reducing water vapor permeability to 0.22 g·mm/m²·h·kPa. In a 30-day vitro food model trial, both active formulations functioned as effective oxygen barriers, markedly reducing primary lipid oxidation in packaged sunflower oil. Consequently, the integration of plant proteins with bioactive fruit seed oils presents a highly functional, oxidation-resistant, and sustainable approach for advanced active packaging applications.

Sürdürülebilir gıda ambalajlama uygulamalarında bezelye proteini umut vadeden bir biyopolimer olmasına rağmen, doğal filmlerin zayıf mekanik ve bariyer özellikleri endüstriyel kullanımını sınırlamaktadır. Bu çalışma, farklı güç seviyelerinde (%0–100) uygulanan yüksek yoğunluklu ultrasonikasyon işleminin, bezelye proteini bazlı filmlerin fizikokimyasal, mekanik ve bariyer performansı üzerindeki etkilerini incelemeyi amaçlamıştır. FTIR analizleri, ultrasonik kavitasyonun protein zincirlerinde yapısal yeniden düzenlenmeyi teşvik ettiğini ve moleküller arası etkileşimleri güçlendirdiğini düşündürmektedir. Elde edilen bulgular, artan ultrasonik gücün film matrisini daha homojen ve kompakt hale getirdiğini; buna bağlı olarak nem içeriğinin (%22.91-9.60) ve opaklığın (3.47-1.87) önemli ölçüde azaldığını göstermiştir. Mekanik özellikler açısından, ultrasonikasyon işlemi filmlerin dayanıklılığını belirgin şekilde artırmış (8.05-13.05 MPa); özellikle %80 güç seviyesinde (US80) en yüksek değerlere ulaşmıştır. Ayrıca, sıkılaşan polimer ağı sayesinde su buharı ve oksijen geçirgenliği değerlerinde iyileşmeler kaydedilmiştir. Sonuç olarak, kontrollü ultrasonikasyon uygulamasının, bezelye proteini filmlerinin fonksiyonel kısıtlamalarını aşmada etkili bir strateji olduğu ve geliştirilen biyofilmlerin gıda ambalaj endüstrisi için güçlü bir alternatif oluşturduğu ortaya konulmuştur.

This review examines the impact of disasters on food security and nutritional needs, with a focus on vulnerable populations. It highlights the nutritional challenges encountered by vulnerable groups, such as lactating women, infants, and the elderly. Disasters trigger acute stress responses that disrupt metabolic rates, inflammation, and tissue repair, creating a mismatch between emergency food supplies and physiological needs. Research highlights both immediate food insecurity and long-term health risks, such as increased obesity rates among evacuees. Older adults require sufficient protein intake to prevent muscle loss, yet evacuation shelter meals often lack essential nutrients. Dietary modifications, such as soft foods, can help address these needs, while emergency diets must also provide adequate vitamins and minerals to mitigate stress, immune dysfunction, and prolonged inactivity. Intervention programs, such as targeted food assistance, have positively impacted food security and nutritional outcomes. Sustainable approaches—like resilience frameworks and local food production initiatives—enhance long-term food security, particularly in resource-limited settings. Additionally, broader perspectives on food sovereignty and health equity emphasize the importance of addressing systemic inequities in food access. Strengthening local control over food resources and governance can improve resilience and food security during disaster recovery. The relationship between displacement, housing instability, and food insecurity further underscores the necessity of coordinated, multi-sectoral interventions. A comprehensive strategy should integrate both short-term emergency food provisions and long-term nutritional planning. This approach must incorporate quantitative data (e.g., household surveys, statistical models) and qualitative insights on community resilience to develop targeted, effective interventions. By adopting an integrated recovery framework, food security efforts can better meet the needs of vulnerable populations, fostering sustainable, long-term resilience in disaster-prone areas.

Today, synthetic drugs with side effects on health are used as agents for treating diseases. Moreover, these agents are utilized in the treatment of one specific disease. Consequently, it is essential to develop natural systems that do not harm health and instead foster healing for a range of diseases upon consumption. Therefore, the study focused on examining the behavior of nanocarriers containing the combination of Quercus infectoria gall‐derived phenolic powder (GP) and pomegranate seed‐derived peptide (BP) on type 2 diabetes and hypertension in the in vitro gastrointestinal tract. Firstly, the plausible conditions (enzyme type: Alcalase and enzyme‐to‐protein ratio: 1/20, w/w) for BP production were performed. Nanoliposomal systems having four different natures were called B‐NL (nanoliposome prepared without phyto‐active), GP‐NL (phenolic‐loaded nanoliposome), BP‐NL (peptide‐loaded nanoliposome), and GPBP‐NL (both phenolic and peptide‐loaded nanoliposome). The conversion of protein to peptide resulted in the disappearance of characteristic protein bands in SDS‐PAGE. FTIR spectra indicated that physical interactions predominated within nanocarriers. SEM images showed the dominance of spherical structures for all samples. Particle size (228.90‐364.30 nm), polydispersity index (PDI: 0.10‐0.48), zeta potential (14.50‐17.00 mV), and encapsulation efficiency (EE: 86.33%–90.30%) of nanoliposomes were elaborated. Bioaccessibility of GP (40.05%) and BP (38.09%) was lower than those of their nano‐encased forms (85.92%–87.03%). Also, GP‐NL, BP‐NL, and GPBP‐NL displayed superior inhibition activity toward key enzymes associated with type 2 diabetes and hypertension in the micellar phase compared to their uncoated forms. Ultimately, innovative bifunctional nanocarriers with high potential for treating diabetes and hypertension were developed.

Bu çalışmada yağı alınmış nar çekirdeklerin fenolik antioksidanların uygun şartlarda özütlenmesine odaklanılmıştır. Bu bağlamda özütleme adımında ultrases sistemi kullanılmış ve şartlar yanıt yüzey yöntemi ile optimize edilmiştir. Optimizasyon işleminde, özütleme süresinin (5-60 dk) ve ultrases cihazının genliğinin (%20-100) toplam fenolik madde miktarı üzerine etkisi araştırılmıştır. Maksimum toplam fenolik madde miktarı (TFM), özütleme süresinin 52 dk ve genliğin %88 olduğu noktada elde edilmiştir. Optimum koşullarda elde edilen özütlere ait özellikler klasik yöntemle (metanolik özütler) elde edilen özütlerle karşılaştırmalı olarak verilmiştir. Ultrases sistemi kullanılarak elde edilen özütlerin TFM (2.94 mg GAE g-1), toplam flavanoid madde miktarı (TFMM) (0.36 mg KE g-1) ve toplam hidrolize tanen madde miktarı (THTM) (22.07 mg TAE g-1) metanolik özütlerden (2.60 mg GAE g-1, 0.27 mg KE g-1, 16.73 mg TAE g-1) daha yüksek olduğu tespit edilmiştir. LC-ESI-MS/MS sonuçları yağsız nar çekirdeklerinin gallik asit ve ellajik asit açısından zengin olduğunu göstermiştir. Fenolik asitlerin baskınlığı FTIR spektroskopisi ile doğrulanmıştır. Üstün antioksidatif davranış optimum koşullarda hazırlanan özütlerde (DPPH: 105.26 µmol TEAC g-1, ABTS: 57.65 µmol TEAC g-1, FRAP: 13.03 µmol TEAC g-1, CUPRAC: 8.91 µmol TEAC g-1) tespit edilmiştir. Sonuçlar, meyve çekirdeklerden biyoaktif maddelerin özütlenmesinde ultrases sisteminin efektif bir uygulama olduğunu ortaya koymuştur.

The current study focused on creating natural hydrogels consisting of mixtures of avocado seed proteins dried with different techniques and locust bean gum. Proteins were extracted from avocado seed by alkali and isoelectric precipitation methods. Avocado seed proteins were dried by five different drying methods, namely ambient drying, oven drying, vacuum drying, freeze drying, and spray drying. FT-IR spectra were used to analyze the chemical structure of proteins dried using various techniques. Additionally, hydrogel models were constructed in the presence of avocado seed proteins and locust bean gum to clarify the effect of drying techniques on their hydrogelling ability. The impact of drying techniques on the functional behavior of hydrogels was notable. The maximum water holding capacity values were detected in the hydrogel system containing spray-dried proteins (93.79%), followed by freeze-dried (86.83%), vacuum-dried (76.17%), oven-dried (72.29%), and ambient-dried (64.8%) counterparts. The swelling ratio was 34.10, 33.51, 23.05, 18.93, and 14.39% for gels in the presence of freeze-dried, spray-dried, vacuum-dried, oven-dried, and ambient-dried proteins, respectively. Additionally, the desirable values for the amount of protein leaking from the systems prepared using spray-dried (7.99%) and freeze-dried (12.14%) proteins were obtained compared to others (ambient-dried: 24.03%; oven-dried: 17.69%; vacuum-dried: 19.10%). Superior results in terms of textural properties were achieved in hydrogel models containing spray-dried and freeze-dried proteins. In general, hydrogel models exhibited elastic behavior rather than viscous properties; however, the magnitudes of elasticity varied. Furthermore, the success of gels containing hydrogel models containing spray-dried protein and locust bean gum in the bioactive compound delivery system was obvious compared with protein ones alone.

Bu çalışmada Siirt ili Pervari ilçesinde üretimi yapılan balların karakteristik özelliklerini ortaya koymak amaçlanmıştır. Bu bağlamda 20 farklı yerel üreticiden toplanan ballarda kül miktarı, 5-hidroksimetilfurfural (HMF), toplam fenolik madde miktarı ve antioksidan aktivite analizleri yapılmıştır. Ayrıca, tüm numunelerin şeker fraksiyonları yüksek performanslı sıvı kromatografisi (HPLC) kullanılarak araştırılmıştır. Bal örneklerinin kül miktarı (%0.14-0.37) ve HMF (0.83-0.94 mg kg-1) açısından Türk Gıda Kodeksi Bal Tebliği (2020/7) ile uyumlu olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Örneklerin toplam fenolik madde miktarı ve antioksidan aktivite sonuçları sırasıyla 19.59-30.93 mg gallik asit eşdeğeri (GAE) 100 g-1 ve 12.87-23.94 askorbik asit eşdeğeri (AAE) 100 g-1 arasında olduğu belirlenmiştir. Ballardaki şeker miktarı da Türk Gıda Kodeksi Bal Tebliği (2020/7) ile uyumlu olup balda oransal olarak ilk sırayı glukozun (%41.25-50.11) daha sonra fruktozun (%33.91-45.37) ve sakkarozun (%3.27-4.70) aldığı bulunmuştur. Elde edilen sonuçlar kalite standardı için referans niteliği sağlayacak ve Pervari ballarının ulusal ve uluslararası pazarlarda görünürlüğünü arttıracaktır.